Maigret on the Defensive

About “Maigret on the Defensive”

Maigret is fifty-two and preparing to retire in three years, having built a distinguished career as a detective. His cases have been widely publicized, making his name well-known. However, he is summoned urgently to the Chief Commissioner's office, where he faces a serious accusation. He is accused of picking up a young girl in a bar, taking her to nightclubs, and attempting to seduce her at a hotel. Though he had taken the girl to a hotel to care for her after she became ill and drunk, the girl's uncle, a man of influence, spread the story, and the Chief Commissioner believed her rather than Maigret.