MovieChat Forums > The Day of the Jackal (1973) Discussion > Why wasn't Bastien-Thiry guillotined?

Why wasn't Bastien-Thiry guillotined?

posted 11 years ago by jayrussell1993
3 replies | jump to latest

Was Bastien-Thiry's execution a mistake in the screenplay? Thought French
felons who got the death penalty were always guillotined.

[–] bruchpilot 11 years ago

No, they were the last people to be executed by firing squad in france.
Read their names and stories up on wikipedia.

[–] ib011f9545i 11 years ago

I always assumed the firing squad was because he was a military man,not just a common criminal.

[–] jd-276 8 years ago

The firing squad was reserved for crimes against the state under Article 13 of the French Penal Code (prior to 1981).