The death penalty was abolished in France on September 9, 1981, mainly through the efforts of then Socialist Justice Minister, Robert Badinter.

The death penalty was abolished in France on September 9, 1981, mainly through the efforts of then  Socialist Justice Minister, Robert Badinter. Like its European Union partners, it refuses to send prisoners to countries where they could face the death penalty.
The last public execution by guillotine was carried out on June 17, 1939. Eugene Weidmann was executed before a large crowd in Versailles. France then banned public executions, confining them to a prison courtyard, where they continued until 1977. The last non- public use of the guillotine took place at Baumetes Prison, in Marseilles, on September 10, 1977. Hamida Djandoubi, a Tunisian immigrant convicted of murder, was beheaded. France co-sponsored the resolution on the death penalty approved by the UN Commission on Human Rights on April 20, 2005.