France harassment law hands out 447 fines in first months
French courts have issued 447 fines in the eight months since the "outrages sexistes" law against street harassment was passed in August 2018, allowing fines from €90 to €750 to be issued on the spot without a lengthy and difficult formal complaint process. [Street harassment is generally considered to be a problem in France and reports of crude and harassing behavior have been receiving attention recently.] According to Equality Minister Marlène Schiappa the number of cases suggests the measure is working (despite initial skepticism in parliament) and that the deterrent would "grow in power".