   robert badinter (; born 30 march 1928) is a high-profile french criminal, university professor and politician mainly known for his struggle against the death penalty, the abolition of which he successfully sponsored in parliament in 1981. a member of the socialist party (ps), he served as minister of justice and then president of the constitutional council under franÃ§ois mitterrand. ==political career== ===death penalty=== in 1965, along with jean-denis bredin, badinter founded the law firm badinter, bredin et partenaires (now known as bredin prat), where he practised until 1981. badinter's struggle against the death penalty began after roger bontems's execution, on 28 november 1972. along with claude buffet, bontems had taken a prison guard and a nurse hostage during the 1971 revolt in clairvaux prison. while the police were storming the building, buffet slit the hostages' throats. badinter was the attorney for bontems, and although it was established during the trial that buffet alone was the murderer, the jury still decided to sentence both men to death. applying the death penalty to a person who had not killed outraged badinter to the point that he dedicated himself to the abolition of the death penalty. in this context, and as a lawyer, he agreed to defend patrick henry. in january 1976, 8-year-old philipe bertrand was kidnapped. patrick henry was suspected very 
1928_births Fellows_of_the_American_Academy_of_Arts_and_Sciences French_Jews French_Ministers_of_Justice French_Senators_of_the_Fifth_Republic French_antiadeath_penalty_activists French_people_of_Moldovan-Jewish_descent Human_rights_in_France LGBT_rights_activists_from_France Living_people Politicians_from_Paris Recipients_of_the_Order_of_TomA!A!_Garrigue_Masaryk Socialist_Party_(France)_politicians Tibet_freedom_activists