A police officer accused of shooting a teenager who had threatened to attack him in 2014 was finally acquitted after a second trial and a lengthy legal battle.
• Also read: Despite a legal “gaffe,” a new trial is underway against a police officer charged with negligent homicide
• Also read: A new trial against the SQ police officer who shot a teenager in Sainte-Adèle
• Also read: Teenager killed in Sainte-Adèle: everything starts again for an accused police officer
The fate of Éric Deslauriers was revealed this morning at the Saint-Jérôme courthouse, almost exactly a decade after the tragedy.
This result was eagerly awaited: the number of the 52-year-old's relatives and colleagues was so large that two courtrooms were overcrowded.
At the end of the hearing, the main victim had her face flushed with emotion and warmly hugged her several times.
After his acquittal, Éric Deslauriers' recognition multiplied. Photo Laurent Lavoie
The corridor of the Saint-Jérôme courthouse was crowded. Photo Laurent Lavoie
The police officer was first sentenced to four years in prison for manslaughter by Judge Joëlle Roy in January 2018.
However, the appeals court had ordered a new trial because the judge had excluded evidence that favored Deslauriers' claimed self-defense.
The case amounts to a “judicial slip-up,” even Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada Richard Wagner said during a hearing.
With a bang
This saga was sparked on January 22, 2014, when Sergeant Deslauriers found a stolen car in the parking lot of Sainte-Adèle High School.
After stopping his patrol car so that any exit to the car was blocked, he asked the suspect driver to get out and show him his hands.
Instead, the young man revved the car's engine and when the officer drew his gun, the victim sped forward.
MAXIME DELAND/AGENCE QMI
The sergeant immediately fired two projectiles at the young driver, fatally hitting him.
During the trial, the defendant denied trying to take the suspect's life and claimed that he was instead trying to save his own life.
Note that during the trial, Judge Joëlle Roy's bias was questioned because of her comments in 2012, before her appointment.
“I don’t know how many people are actually murdered by police officers,” she said in an interview.
More details to follow…