Judge François Huot did not mince his words when pronouncing the sentence of Michaël Chicoine, Wednesday afternoon. “I’m tired of seeing adults solve their adult problems by attacking children,” he told the man sentenced to 16 and a half years in prison without the possibility of parole for the murder of her two little boys.
A few weeks before his trial, Michaël Chicoine finally changed his mind and decided to plead guilty on Wednesday, at the Quebec courthouse.
The 32-year-old man was facing charges of second degree murder – because not premeditated – for the death of his two sons, Olivier (5 years old) and Alex (2 years old), which occurred in 2020 in a residence in Wendake.
“They were beautiful, your children”, launched the judge to begin by pointing a photo in the direction of the future prisoner, at the time of pronouncing the sentence. In the room, we could hear loud and incessant sobs from both sides of the family: that of the children’s mother, Émilie Arsenault, surrounded by her relatives, and that of the accused, made up of his mother, Mylène Chicoine, and his sister.
“They are angry, said the judge before raising his voice. And you know what ? I too am angry! Because I’m tired of seeing adults solving their adult problems by attacking children. I’m tired of seeing little beings paying for the nonsense of their parents. »
At the time of the facts, Michaël Chicoine and the mother of the boys had been separated for two years. ” Their relationship [était] conflict since then. […] There’s [avait] a dispute concerning the custody of the victims, ”explained the prosecutor Simon Larouche in a statement summarizing the facts.
What repels me even more is that you committed these acts knowingly. I never doubted that you were in full possession of your faculties
On the night of October 11, 2020, Michaël Chicoine sent his mother and his ex-spouse a photo showing the two victims “lifeless, lying in a bed”.
In the message to his mother, the accused wrote “I’m sorry, mom, I suffered too much”, adding that his ex-spouse had done him “so much harm”. To the latter, he simply wrote “farewell”.
The accused then swallowed “medication to commit suicide” and headed for the police station, where he said he killed his children.
“The murder of the two boys sparked a lively debate on the work of the Department of Youth Protection (DPJ). The children’s mother criticized the DPJ for having failed in its duty to protect the children. »
He faced a life sentence without the possibility of release before a period ranging from 10 to 25 years. By mutual agreement, defense and Crown attorneys proposed to set the deadline at 16 and a half years, which includes the last two years spent behind bars.
Mental health
The judge agreed with this proposal, while emphasizing that he had never believed in the thesis that Michaël Chicoine’s mental health problems made it possible to explain his crimes.
“What repels me even more is that you committed these actions with full knowledge of the facts. I never doubted that you were in full possession of your faculties,” he told the accused before sending him to serve his sentence.
During sentencing submissions, the accused’s mother told the court that her son had never been able to obtain a diagnosis for a particular mental health disorder. “A mental illness has sneakily invaded you,” she had said in tears. No diagnosis was actually made. »
The Crown and the defense had also had psychiatric assessments of the accused made in anticipation of the trial, originally scheduled for January.
Thus, when Michaël Chicoine changed his mind and wanted to plead guilty, the judge wanted to dispel all doubts about his mental state at the time of admission. Before ratifying the plea, he requested that a psychiatrist unrelated to the cause evaluate him. The latter was clear. “He understands the facts, the charges that are brought against him, supported the DD The White. His judgment is not impaired. »
A drama with wider impacts
In court on Wednesday, the defendant was calm, speaking in a low voice when questioned. An attitude at odds with the one he had had in the past. During the hearing during which the date of his trial was set, he was aggressive and notably gave the finger of honor to his ex-spouse.
However, the tone had changed on Wednesday. “Time brings reflection. It’s time to stop the bleeding and put an end to this terrible drama, “he said in a low voice before talking, in tears, about his “two wonderful and extraordinary boys”.
The 32-year-old even paid tribute to the qualities of his ex-spouse. “You have always been an exemplary mother devoted to the happiness of your two cocos,” he said, offering “his most sincere and visceral apologies” to the two families.
His lawyer, Mr.e Pierre Gagnon, said he wanted to convince his client to do so in the hope of offering “a balm”, even a minimum of peace of mind to the family of the victims before the Holidays. The latter, he said, would therefore not have to “concern about the stress” associated with the trial.
One after another, family members described the devastating impacts of the children’s deaths on Wednesday. Relatives of the children’s mother had written letters that prosecutor Simon Larouche read. That of the victims’ uncle, Dave Arsenault, illustrated how the loss had traumatized his own children, aged 5 and 6. “Our son cried every night for a month,” he said. After their funeral, he carried their funeral card in his pocket everywhere he went. […] He was asking me how I could assure him that this person would not come here to do the same to him and his sister. »
On the Chicoine side, the mother and sister preferred to read their dismay themselves. Describing an “unimaginable” healing process, the murderer’s mother spoke to him to tell him that by pleading guilty, he was saving “all of them from reliving the painful event that a trial would have brought us”. “I see it as a sign of kindness towards us in our healing process. »
NEED HELP ? If you are thinking about suicide or worrying about a loved one, workers are available to help you, anywhere in Quebec, at any time. 1 866 CALL (1 866 277-3553) Text: 535 353 Chat, information and tools: www.suicide.ca