French Code of Criminal Procedure
In forceIf the accused is exempted from punishment or acquitted, if he is sentenced to a penalty other than a firm custodial sentence, or if he is sentenced to a firm custodial sentence covered by pre-trial detention, he shall be released immediately if he is not being held for any other reason.
In other cases, if the accused is sentenced to a term of criminal imprisonment as long as the judgment is not final and, if applicable, during the appeal proceedings, the judgment of the assize court shall be deemed to be a detention order until the period of detention has reached that of the sentence pronounced, without prejudice to the accused's right to request his release in accordance with the provisions of articles 148-1 and 148-2. Where the accused is not in custody at the time the judgment is rendered and is sentenced to imprisonment, the court may, by special reasoned decision, decide to issue a committal order, with immediate or deferred effect, if the elements of the case justify a particular security measure.
The court may, by special reasoned decision, decide to issue a committal order against the person remanded for a related offence who is not in custody at the time the judgment is handed down, if the sentence pronounced is greater than or equal to one year's imprisonment and if the elements of the case justify a special security measure. If the sentence handed down is more than six months, the court may also issue a deferred committal order.
Penal sanctions imposed pursuant to Articles 131-6 to 131-11 of the Penal Code may be declared provisionally enforceable.
