Driving in the opposite direction in a curve, Éric Rondeau wanted to avoid ducks on the road. But his maneuver of “extraordinary temerity” killed a young motorcyclist. The driver was sentenced Monday to eight months in prison and a three-year driving ban.
“Here, Rondeau’s gesture is more reckless or grossly blameworthy recklessness than a desire to defy social rules. Obviously, society must sanction such behavior, but it does not require the same degree of social opprobrium as a fundamentally amoral gesture,” concluded Judge Marc-André Blanchard, at the Joliette courthouse.
The Superior Court judge thus retained the detention period suggested by the Crown, thereby rejecting the defense’s suggestion of imprisonment at home (suspended sentence). Éric Rondeau, 48, was found guilty by a jury of dangerous driving causing death last January. He appealed the verdict.
Le destin de Félix-Antoine Gagné a basculé, le 22 juillet 2019. Lors de cette belle journée ensoleillée, le motocycliste de 19 ans circulait sur la route 345, près de Joliette, lorsqu’une camionnette Ford F-150 est apparue à contresens dans une courbe. Le jeune homme n’a eu aucune chance. Il est mort sur le coup, laissant sa famille dans un douloureux deuil.
Au volant de la camionnette, Éric Rondeau tentait alors d’éviter une famille de canards sur la chaussée. Il s’était d’abord immobilisé pendant sept secondes pour laisser les oiseaux traverser. Puis, perdant visiblement patience, l’accusé a braqué sa camionnette à contresens, se retrouvant entièrement dans la voie inverse. Il roulait alors à 18 km/h.
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Le convoi d’Éric Rondeau mesurait plus de 15 mètres. Son véhicule bloquait pratiquement toute la voie en sens inverse.
Un comportement « téméraire et irréfléchi » et une manœuvre d’une « témérité extraordinaire », selon le juge. « [Éric] Rondeau does not travel at breakneck speed, is not under the influence of drugs or alcohol. It is about a sensible person who makes a serious error of judgment in particular circumstances, ”analyzed Judge Blanchard.
As an aggravating factor, judge Blanchard retains only one: the fact that Éric Rondeau was driving a “large” vehicle. This simple term was the subject of a semantic debate between the parties. However, the judge concluded that Rondeau’s vehicle, which measured 15.7 meters because of the pontoon trailer, was “logically a large road vehicle”.
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Félix-Antoine Gagné, the victim
The magistrate agrees that one can “question the social benefit of such a sentence” imposed on a man with an exemplary profile like Éric Rondeau. However, we must not “forget” the objective of denouncing this crime, now punishable by life imprisonment. Also, the consequences are dramatic for the family and for society, recalls the judge, who underlines his “nuanced approach” in sentencing.
The Crown prosecutor, Mr.e Alexandre Dubois, said he was “satisfied” with the judgment. “The decision rendered by Judge Blanchard is a thorough, meticulous decision, which took into account all facets of Mr. Rondeau’s case. The judge explains quite clearly how Mr. Rondeau, who is an individual who has no priors, but who committed a crime, should receive an eight-month prison sentence,” he commented.