The country’s Supreme Court is set to hear one of the most anticipated cases in its history tomorrow, with a hearing on the sentence to be handed down to the author of the attack on the Quebec mosque.
This is an “important” step for the Muslim community in Quebec, but also for those involved in the many murders in Canada in the future and their victims.
In 2011, the Conservative government ended a “sentence waiver” for multiple murders, amending the Criminal Code provision, which now allows 25 murder-ineligible periods to be added to each murder victim. However, the judges have interpreted Section 745.51 in different ways for a decade.
For example, Justin Borg, who killed three RCMP officers in Mangton in 2014, is serving a 75-year prison sentence. Conversely, Toronto serial killer Bruce McArthur will be offered a chance to get parole after 25 years in custody, despite killing eight people.
Ironically, Bruce McArthur was sentenced to life in prison on February 9, 2019, the same day Judge Franசois Hood sentenced Alexandre Bisonet to life in prison without the possibility of a 40-year sentence. , Under the same section of the Criminal Code.
Considering this unconstitutional, Judge Hood was later given the freedom to rewrite the law in accordance with Section 745.51 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The decision, which was reduced to 25 years by the Court of Appeal, will now be debated in the Supreme Court tomorrow.
All of these legal debates weigh heavily on Quebec’s Muslim community, which must once again sink into the horrors of January 29, 2017.
During this tragic evening, Alexandre Bissonet weighed in 48 times at the instigation of his pistol, killing six members of the Islamic Cultural Center in Quebec, injuring eight victims and creating 17 orphans.
Mohamed Labidi, the former head of the mosque, confirms that these visitors are “awaited” by his community and that the day will be important.
“We’m going to follow this closely, this is the big day we’ve been waiting for,” he expects.
The latter does not want to “criticize the judges” who have previously considered the issue, but wants a clear conclusion at the end of the process. “The Supreme Court should decide for an accumulation or for an example of a maximum of 50 years,” he said, without realizing that number was a demand.
Mr. Lapidi also insists the community must “live with the Supreme Court’s ruling.” The National Council of Canadian Muslims will present its representation tomorrow in the presence of nine judges.
He was also one of the participants in twenty or more interventions in Ottawa where the summary was submitted and heard, including attorneys generals from five provinces, a group of relatives of the victims, and police associations trying to persuade the judges.
Long legal history
- Alexandre Bissonnette | He was 27 years old at the time of the crime in January 2017
- March 28, 2018 | The accused pleaded guilty to 12 charges, including 6 first-degree murders.
- February 8, 2019 | Quebec High Court Judge Franசois Hood has declared Section 745.51 of the Criminal Code unconstitutional, rewriting the law and imposing a 40-year prison sentence on the accused.
- November 26, 2020 | The Quebec Court of Appeals also ruled that Section 745.51 was unconstitutional, calling the rule “absurd.” This reduces the sentence to 25 years in prison.
- May 27, 2021 | The Supreme Court agrees to hear Quebec’s Attorney General’s appeal against the sentence.
- March 24, 2022 | Supreme Court of Canada hearing
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