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The French judicial and penal system is facing a double constraint. First, it has to deal with the introduction of New Public Management (NPM) criteria, which are leading to an increase in prosecutions. Secondly, it has to take into account the political demand for greater severity in punishment. As a result, the courts have increasingly sentenced individuals to prison; however, French prisons are already overcrowded. These contradictions lead all magistrates, judges, and prosecutors to act contrary to their convictions. Instead of improving coordination between the courts and the prison service, the NPM emphasizes the partitions and creates many inconsistencies. The judges in charge of executions are more autonomous, and the prosecutors cite a schizophrenic situation.