The Parole Board (CLSC) refuses that Cédric Bouchard, one of those responsible for the triple murder committed in Trois-Rivières in 2014, visits his family during an escorted outing because of his “emotional fragility” and the risks that ‘it represents.
• Read also: ‘He killed our children’: Relatives of killer victims oppose his request for family release
“We believe that it is not desirable, at this stage, that you be authorized to leave this outing,” ruled one of the CLSC commissioners during a hearing on Wednesday morning.
According to the organization, Cédric Bouchard lacks emotional maturity to be granted such a privilege. She underlines the difficulty with which he manages his anxiety when he broaches delicate subjects and recalls his suicide attempt last September.
A new assessment carried out barely two months ago confirmed that the 26-year-old man still represented a high risk for the population.
Recall that Bouchard and his accomplice Kaven Sirois had been sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for 10 years for the murder of two sisters and the spouse of one of them, in February 2014, in Trois- Rivers.
End your life in prison
Bouchard, dressed in a simple T-shirt and with his hair tied back, accepted the decision of the commissioners in a completely stoic way, without flinching.
“Every time I try to follow the recommendations, it’s like nothing changes. I’m afraid of just ending the rest of my life in prison,” he said during the hearing.
This outing for “family relations” was to serve to “strengthen ties” with his mother and sister by discussing delicate subjects outside the walls of the penitentiary of Cowansville. In particular the ill-treatment he allegedly suffered in his youth.
Despite this refusal, the Parole Board was keen to highlight the progress made by the man over the years he spent behind bars.
“There is still a lot of work to do, but you have come a long way and you have put in a lot of effort. The Commission encourages you not to give up,” said one of the commissioners.
Relatives oppose
A first hearing in connection with this request took place last March, during which the relatives of victims were fiercely opposed to the request.
“He killed our children! […] He didn’t give a damn about my family relationships on February 11, 2014. [Cette demande-là] is unacceptable and insulting”, had then testified the mother of one of them.
However, this first meeting had to be adjourned, the file being considered incomplete due to the absence of a community investigation at the home of Cédric Bouchard’s sister, where the visit was to take place.