Hearing in September on whether Quebec daycare crash accused is high-risk offender
LAVAL – A court hearing will take place in September into whether a man who killed two children by driving a city bus into a Montreal-area daycare should be declared a high-risk offender.
Superior Court Justice Éric Downs today set aside one week beginning Sept. 15 to hear arguments from prosecutors and the defence team for Pierre Ny St-Amand.
Last week, the 53-year-old former bus driver was found not criminally responsible after Downs agreed with a joint recommendation from the Crown and defence that the accused was likely in psychosis when he crashed the bus into the daycare on Feb. 8, 2023.
Prosecutors have said they will argue that Ny St-Amand should be declared a high-risk offender, a designation that would ensure he is held under strict conditions at a psychiatric facility.
The defence, meanwhile, has said it will challenge whether the high-risk offender status is constitutional, during a separate hearing that Downs said today will be heard over a week beginning Nov. 15.
Downs told defence lawyers he wanted a response from federal government's lawyers on the high-risk designation, which was included in the Criminal Code in 2014 for people found not criminally responsible for violent crimes.
Killed in the crash were Jacob Gauthier, 4, and a five-year-old girl named Maëva, whose family name is covered by a publication ban at the request of her parents. Six other children were injured.
Winnipeg Jets Game Days
On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop.
The case will return to court on May 27.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 9, 2025.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CBC
5 hours ago
- CBC
Northern wildfires force Sask. courts to shift operations to Saskatoon
The first indication that it's not business as usual at La Ronge docket court is that it's taking place at the provincial courthouse in Saskatoon. The second indication is that the judge, Murray Pelletier, is on the bench wearing a dress shirt instead of robes. The Crown and defence are appearing remotely on a video screen. On this weekday morning, Pelletier is casually chatting with staff, offering updates on the status of his grandson, who is back in the northern community and staying at the Mel Hegland Uniplex. There are jokes about who needs to smoke cigarettes when you only need to step outside. And then, at 9:30 a.m. CST, Pelletier glances at his computer screen and stands to open court. "Thanks to everyone for attending in these exceptional circumstances," he says to the Crown and defence. The northern fires are causing week-by-week adjustments in court schedules across the north. For the week of June 3, the fires disrupted sittings at Cumberland House, Black Lake, Deschambault Lake and La Ronge. On Friday, Pelletier dealt with two docket matters. The first concerned a trial scheduled for June 6 for a man charged with assault and uttering death threats. "Due to the exceptional circumstances in La Ronge, the trial is unable to go ahead," he concluded. It was rescheduled for Aug. 22. The second matter involved adjusting the release conditions for a man awaiting trial on charges of escaping custody and sexual assault. The La Ronge courthouse will remain closed until at least June 13. While the courts are working remotely, RCMP say officers are staying in the areas affected by fire until it becomes too imminently dangerous for them to be there. There are officers patrolling and responding to calls for service in all northern Saskatchewan communities, including in the La Ronge and Creighton detachment areas, which have been heavily hit by wildfire. "We are maintaining a strong police presence to deter any people who are thinking of committing crime — and potentially making an already stressful situation worse for their potential victims," Staff Sgt. Shawn Carter said in a news release, Officers are regularly patrolling communities that are evacuated. RCMP said two men from La Ronge were arrested in a stolen auto at a Highway No. 2 checkpoint on June 4. Officers recovered a laptop and package, and connected the men to a theft in the town on June 3. Due to the fires, Saskatchewan RCMP has also redirected approximately 29 officers who were scheduled to assist at the upcoming G7 meeting to help here in our province.
Global News
7 hours ago
- Global News
World junior trial will generate ‘big conversations' for years as closing submissions begin
The high-profile sexual assault trial of five members of Canada's 2018 world junior hockey team will generate 'big conversations' for years to come, one advocate says, as closing submissions are set to begin. The London, Ont., trial, which has seen two juries dismissed since it began in late April, has been proceeding by judge alone and was adjourned last Monday after defence lawyers rested their cases. Closing submissions will begin Monday, and Crown prosecutors said they'd need a day for it. Defence lawyers said they would collaborate to avoid repetition during their submissions. Michael McLeod, Carter Hart, Alex Formenton, Dillon Dube and Callan Foote have pleaded not guilty to sexual assault stemming from what the Crown alleges was non-consensual group sex with a 20-year-old woman in McLeod's London hotel room in June 2018. Story continues below advertisement McLeod has also pleaded not guilty to an additional charge of being a party to the offence of sexual assault. 2:10 Crown cross-examines 1 of the 5 accused men at world junior hockey sexual assault trial Court has heard that the team was in London for events marking its gold-medal performance at that year's championship, and the complainant, known as E.M. in court documents, was out with friends when they met at a downtown bar on June 18, 2018. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy After being with McLeod and his teammates at the bar, E.M. would go on to have consensual sex with McLeod in his room in the early morning hours of June 19. Court has heard that E.M., who testified she was drunk and not of clear mind, was in the washroom after she had sex with McLeod and came out to a group of men in the room allegedly invited for a '3 way' by McLeod in a group chat. Story continues below advertisement It was then that the Crown alleges several sexual acts took place without E.M.'s consent. The 27-year-old woman, whose identity is protected under a standard publication ban, was subject to intense cross-examination during her nearly two weeks on the stand. Defence lawyers have suggested E.M. wasn't as drunk as she has testified she was, wanted a 'wild night' with the players and was 'egging' them on to have sex with her, and accused her of having a 'clear agenda' at the trial. E.M. has pushed back against those claims and at points outright rejected them, saying she was coaxed into staying in the room, was disrespected and was taken advantage of by the group, who she said 'could see I was out of my mind.' 0:33 What's the biggest takeaway from the world junior hockey trial? Only Hart testified at the trial, while the other players' lawyers cited evidence and police interviews that were already played out in court as part of the reasons why they weren't calling evidence. Story continues below advertisement Trial will generate 'pretty big conversations' about consent: advocate At the heart of the Crown's case is the question of consent, and advocate Jennifer Dunn said that regardless of the verdict, the issues at the heart of the trial will generate 'pretty big conversations' for years to come. 'What kind of conversations can we have to shift … what consent is or healthy relationships and that sort of thing?' Dunn, executive director of the London Abused Women's Centre, told Global News. View image in full screen Jennifer Dunn, executive director of the London Abused Women's Centre, stands outside a courthouse in London, Ont., on June 5, 2025. Dunn told Global News the high-profile world junior sexual assault trial will generate 'pretty big conversations' on consent for years to come. Sawyer Bogdan/Global News Throughout E.M.'s testimony, Dunn said the London Abused Women's Centre had a presence in court, adding that the case draws attention to the need for a more victim-centred approach in the justice system. Story continues below advertisement But regardless of the outcome, Dunn said the trial is a powerful message for sexual assault complainants. 'We have a woman like E.M., who is willing to not only go through that, but then we have community coming together to support her to show other women that we're not alone, that they're not alone,' Dunn said.
Globe and Mail
18 hours ago
- Globe and Mail
Killing of 18-year-old man is Montreal's sixteenth homicide of the year, police say
Montreal police say a suspicious death that occurred Saturday evening marks the city's 16th homicide of the year. Police spokesperson Antony Dorelas says the victim is an 18-year-old man. So far no arrests have been made for the killing, which occurred in Montreal's Mercier-Hochelaga-Maisonneuve borough. Police say a second victim who suffered non-life-threatening injuries has also been found. First responders were called to the crime scene at about 10 p.m. on Saturday near the intersection of Notre-Dame and Sainte-Catherine streets. At this time last year, Montreal had seen 17 of the 32 homicides that would occur in 2024, compared to 31 homicides in 2023 and 42 in 2022.
