A Moncton courtroom heard emotional victim impact statements from the family and colleagues of three slain RCMP officers Monday morning as the sentencing hearing for Justin Bourque began.
Bourque pleaded guilty in August to three charges of first-degree murder and two charges of attempted murder after shooting five RCMP officers.
Bourque is now sitting in a Moncton courtroom, behind glass.
The courtroom heard the victim impact statements from family members of the slain officers, Const. Doug Larche, Const. Dave Ross and Const. Fabrice Gevaudan.
Rachael Ross said in a videotaped statement that she has been in "survival mode" since she lost her husband.
Justin Bourque pleaded guilty to three counts of murder and two counts of attempted murder in connection with the shootings of five RCMP officers in Moncton. (Courtesy of Andrew Robson)
She told the court how her husband was "ripped away" from their family.
"I felt I could face anything with him by my side. We truly loved each other," she said.
"Our lives are shattered."
Nadine Larche also offered an emotional statement, which was pre-recorded.
She described how he is already missing so many important events, such as their oldest daughter's first dance.
"Now I'm raising three girls on my own. Solo parenting was not the plan," she said.
"I wish we could bring you back. We love you to the moon."
The wives of the three slain officers issued a statement on Monday morning.
"We are aware that a lot of information will be presented in court today and tomorrow regarding specific details about the incident and those involved," the statement said.
'Three absolutely brilliant fathers were taken from their children just for doing their jobs.'- Const. Robert Nickerson
"We hope the members of the media will choose to continue to focus their reports on the people of our community, including emergency services personnel, who really came together, and continue to work hard to keep us all safe. We believe it is important to give attention to people who choose to do good.
Larche, Ross and Angela Gevaudan said they would not be giving media interviews.
Const. Robert Nickerson, who saw the shooting and performed CPR on one of his fallen colleagues, also submitted a victim impact statement.
Nickerson said his son asked what happened on the night of June 4.
"I told him dad lost three good friends. Three absolutely brilliant fathers were taken from their children just for doing their jobs."
Earlier in the morning, the Crown prosecutor submitted a list of exhibits that will be introduced and estimated it would take a day and a half to get through the hearing.
Bourque's statement to police will also be played in the courtroom, and the court will hear 911 calls from neighbours during the shooting spree.
As well, a psychiatric report that was previously under a publication ban will be released.
The Crown prosecutor said some of the evidence that will be shown during the hearing may be considered disturbing.
He said there are 56,000 pages connected to the investigation and included 9,000 images. It involved 970 officers.
The Crown prosecutor said Bourque deliberately targeted the police officers on June 4.
The high-profile sentencing hearing brought out a large crowd of spectators on Monday morning.
The Moncton courtroom had to set up an overflow room for people who wanted to listen to the hearing.
New sentencing law
Chief Justice David Smith will be determining Bourque's sentence.
The Crown gave notice in August that it will seek three consecutive life terms, which could mean 75 years in prison for Bourque.
On Monday, the Crown prosecutor reiterated that demand, while he said the defence would argue for a lighter sentence.
Bourque, who was 24 at the time of the killings, would be 99 years of age before becoming eligible for parole, if he were given three consecutive life sentences.
Until 2011, the maximum sentence a multiple killer could be given in Canada was life in prison with no parole eligibility for 25 years.
In 2011, however, the federal government passed a new law that allows judges to sentence offenders consecutively when convicted of more than one murder.
The first case in which the law was used in sentencing was in 2013, when Travis Baumgartner received a 40-year sentence for killing three of his security company co-workers during a robbery.
Community reaction
The night of the Moncton shootings has been etched into the memory of many people who live in the north-end neighbourhood.
Joan MacAlpine-Stiles said she will never forget what she saw outside her house that evening.
"I just opened up the window, and here's this guy walking … across my backyard, donned in camouflage with two rifles and looked like Rambo from the TV show," MacAlpine-Stiles said.
Moncton has reached out to people who live in the part of the city that was in the lockdown zone during the shootings and sent them brochures with information about how to identify psychological changes after a traumatic event.
While it may be difficult for people to forget that evening, some New Brunswickers are trying to find ways to remember the officers who were killed or injured by Bourque.
Trees planted
On the weekend, a Riverview park added a small memorial to the slain and wounded officers.
Dorothy Gray, the district commissioner of the Riverview Girl Guides, said the organization received money to plant trees in the neighbouring town.
So they came up with a plan to plant five maple trees along the Petitcodiac River.
"They are planted in honour of the five constables, who were involved in the incident on June 4 in Moncton. And yesterday at the ceremony two of the two surviving RCMP constables were in attendance, which made it very meaningful," Gray said.
Abby Fisher, the mother of one of the Girl Guides who helped plant the trees, said it was important for the guides to be a part of the dedication.
"We tell them that they put their lives on the line for us every day, and we need to show appreciation," she said.
Anda sedang membaca artikel tentang
'Our lives are shattered,' court hears in Justin Bourque hearing
Dengan url
http://topstorinfo.blogspot.com/2014/10/our-lives-are-shattered-court-hears-in.html
Anda boleh menyebar luaskannya atau mengcopy paste-nya
'Our lives are shattered,' court hears in Justin Bourque hearing
namun jangan lupa untuk meletakkan link
'Our lives are shattered,' court hears in Justin Bourque hearing
sebagai sumbernya
0 komentar:
Posting Komentar