Incarceration Fees and Staff Safety: Gérald Darmanin Unveils Prison Reform Plan

In response to a recent surge in attacks on correctional facilities, French Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin announced a series of measures on Monday, April 28, during the 8 p.m. news broadcast on TF1. His plan aims to improve prison staff working conditions and reinforce security. Chief among the proposals is the reinstatement of incarceration fees, a symbolic but meaningful contribution inmates would pay to help fund the public justice system.

“Until 2003, inmates contributed through a daily flat fee, similar to a hospital charge. I intend to reinstate it,” said the minister, noting that the measure will require changes to existing legislation and will be debated in Parliament in the coming weeks. Individuals held in pretrial detention and those deemed indigent would be exempt from this contribution.

A Contribution to Support Prison Staff

Operating costs for French prisons amount to nearly 4 billion euros annually, or roughly 10 million euros per day. “Everyone must contribute according to their means,” Darmanin argued, emphasizing that funds collected would go directly toward improving conditions and resources for correctional officers.

In a letter shared on social media and addressed to prison staff, the minister outlined other major initiatives: additional recruitment, the creation of a dedicated prison police force, and improvements to daily working conditions inside facilities. A key measure includes the anonymization of prison staff identities in official documents; moving forward, only badge numbers will be used in reports or records following cell searches or confiscations.

A Response to a Wave of Violence

These announcements come amid a tense climate. In recent days, several correctional facilities have been targeted by acts of violence or intimidation, allegedly orchestrated by drug trafficking networks. Darmanin specifically named criminal groups such as the DZ Mafia, suspected of attempting to destabilize the prison system. A nationwide police operation has already led to the arrest of around twenty individuals, with further arrests expected.

With this set of reforms, the Justice Minister says he intends to restore state authority within prisons and offer greater protection to staff facing escalating threats.