The teenager accused of threatening to kill students and staff at Paul-Hubert high school in Rimouski is released pending further proceedings.
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Judge Andrée St-Pierre ruled at the end of the day Tuesday, at the Rimouski courthouse, that the teenager could be released with strict supervision.
The young person will therefore be entrusted to the care of his two parents, who will have to ensure that he respects the numerous conditions imposed by the judge.
Among these conditions: he must be at his residence from Monday to Friday between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m., he cannot be within a radius of 500 meters from the Paul-Hubert high school, he must participate in a follow-up with a psychologist, and this, in the next 48 hours.
The judge demanded that the young person diligently follow school education at home and that he use a computer only in the academic context and under supervision.
A ban on contact with 9 secondary school students is also still in effect.
- Listen to the Gibeault-Dutrizac column with retired judge Nicole Gibeault, among other things about this teenager, at the microphone of Benoit Dutrizac on QUB-radio :
The teenager’s lawyer, Me Hugo Caissy, said he was satisfied with the judge’s decision.
“In all of the evidence, everything was there to be able to release our client,” said the young man’s lawyer, Me Hugo Caissy. We believe that a well-informed public will understand this decision.”
The judge explained her decision by specifying that the young person had undertaken to respect all the conditions, as strict as they are. In addition, she specified that the young person had no prior history and that he had not engaged in any other delinquent behavior.
According to Judge St-Pierre, the strict release conditions protect the public.
For its part, the Crown hoped that the young person would remain detained since he would represent a risk to society. During her plea, the prosecutor notably pointed out that the young person would have had a specific plan and wanted to recreate the Columbine massacre of April 20, 1999 in the United States which left 15 dead.
Moreover, according to information collected by the Crown, the teenager wanted to take action on the day of this sad anniversary. He would have liked to be armed with bombs and guns.
The authorities have also recovered 820 files of firearms on the graphics card of his laptop.
Remember that the teenager had been detained in a youth center since his arrest on March 15. He faces one count of threats that could cause death and bodily harm to all the occupants of the Paul-Hubert secondary school in Rimouski.
The next step in this case will be the formal trial on June 1.