France, March 6 -- The officer, known as Florian M, was initially to appear in a criminal court with a jury on the charge of murdering 17-year-old Nahel Merzouk on 27 June, 2023.

However, his lawyer appealed and in its ruling on Thursday, the appeal court downgraded the charge from murder to violence resulting in death - a lesser offence tried without a jury.

It said it had "not been established" that the officer had intended to kill Nahel at the moment of shooting.

"Florian M could have been convinced that by restarting, the Mercedes was likely to endanger the physical integrity of third parties or of himself," the court said. 'Scandalous' decision

Mobile phone footage of an officer shooting Nahel, who was sitting in the driving seat...