SOREL TRACY | A man who tried to take justice into his own hands by shooting threatening people in a residential neighborhood and hitting a 9-year-old child with a stray bullet may face 10 years in prison reflecting on his impulsive actions.
“Have we achieved a society that can tolerate? [qu’une personne, même de bonne réputation], surrender with weapons to resolve conflicts? » asked Judge Louise Leduc on Friday during her observations on the sentence of Yves Martin Larocque at the Sorel-Tracy courthouse.
“That’s the crux of this matter,” she continued. What a sad story. »
Last January, the 39-year-old man admitted committing grievous bodily harm, firing a firearm with intent to injure and negligent use of a weapon on August 22, 2021 in Contrecœur in Montérégie.
He therefore benefited from conditional imprisonment for attempted murder.
The defendant. Taken from Yves Martin Larocque’s Facebook
A message
That evening, around 7:30 p.m., three criminals appeared at his house on Rue des Pivoines to deliver him a message.
“We’re going to put a team together and get past you,” one of them allegedly told him, defense attorney Morgane Laloum said in court.
I Morgane Laloum, defense attorney. JONATHAN TREMBLAY
According to our information, Martin Larocque was then subjected to intimidation for several months after he was involved in a fight in a nearby bar.
The defendant was awakened by his intruders, took his registered rifle, loaded it, left his house and shot his bullies. He was only wearing a swimsuit.
While attempting to escape while driving a car, David Burelle-Jeanotte was shot in the head. He is a 35-year-old man with a serious criminal past who received more than thirty convictions between 2006 and 2020. Since then he has lived with significant after-effects.
The car driven by Burelle-Jeanotte, a few hours after finishing its race in the ditch, in Contrecœur. Photo agency QMI, Pascal Girard
Another bullet accidentally pierced the thigh of a 9-year-old boy who was in a neighboring field.
A third person was injured, but less seriously.
The wild West”
“It was probably his worst nightmare that happened to him when he met a little child,” admitted Crown prosecutor Me Frédéric Ouellet.
I, Frédéric Ouellet, from the prosecution. JONATHAN TREMBLAY
The latter believes that a prison sentence of 10 years, minus the time already served, would reflect the seriousness of the defendant’s impulsive actions.
“His responsibility is complete. “We were inches away from a death,” the prosecutor said. It’s lucky there wasn’t one. »
“This scene is typical of the Wild West,” he added. We must send a clear signal that we cannot take justice into our own hands. »
Pascal Girard/AGENCE QMI
For its part, the defense suggested that Martin Larocque should receive a sentence equivalent to the sentence already served.
In the worst case scenario, Me Laloum asked his client for a sentence that would allow him to remain in a provincial facility.
While relatives of the defendant were present to support him at the trial, he wanted to address the court to express his regret.
“So many people have suffered because of my actions. I blame myself for acting like that. “I acted impulsively and out of fear,” said the man, who had no history before this affair. I apologize for the pain caused. »
Judge Leduc expects to deliver her verdict next January.
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