“The person who kidnapped and killed Cédrika Provencher is not Jonathan! », insisted Jonathan Bettez’s lawyer on Friday. At the end of a week of preliminary hearings, the Bettez are determined to “win” their case against the Sûreté du Québec, which they accuse of having attacked them for years.
“They are fighters. Extremely resilient people. I salute their courage for being here this week,” said Me Jessy Héroux turning towards Jonathan Bettez and his parents behind him, in the corridor of the Montreal courthouse.
“There will be no settlement in this matter. They began their lawsuit more than four years ago, because they wanted the Sûreté du Québec to be publicly accountable and answer for its actions,” continued the lawyer, in a brief statement to journalists.
PHOTO PATRICK SANFAÇON, THE PRESS
Jonathan Bettez
This week was devoted to pre-trial motions, the date of which should be set by next September. Jonathan Bettez is demanding $10 million in damages from the SQ and the State for having been wrongly portrayed as the murderer of little Cédrika Provencher. The disappearance of the 9-year-old girl in 2007 shocked Quebec. His bones were found in a wood in 2015.
This week’s hearings were therefore devoted to debates – often cryptic – relating to the disclosure to the Bettez camp of documents held by the police. However, in reality, the judge had nothing to decide since the two parties agreed on the essentials of the documents after three days of negotiations.
“ [Ces] Documents from the investigation will allow us to establish the fault of the SQ during the trial. These are the documents we have been asking for for nine months. We managed to find a way to get them, so it’s a success,” rejoiced Me Héroux in the press scrum.
It was Judge Gregory Moore’s decision to allow journalists to attend the closed-door proceedings that pushed the parties to negotiate. As soon as the judge ruled in favor of the media, government lawyers seemed unsettled, even suggesting that Cédrika’s killer could be “very close to journalists.” There was ultimately no debate behind closed doors.
ARCHIVE PHOTO
Cédrika Provencher disappeared in 2007
For the Attorney General of Quebec, this “agreement in principle” with the Bettez camp arises from three elements, including “protection of the public interest.” “So as not to hinder the ongoing investigation into the disappearance and murder of Cédrika Provencher nor to disclose the SQ’s investigative techniques or methods which are unknown to the applicants or the public,” explained Judge M.e Valérie Lamarche.
Bettez’s lawyer then replied in the courtroom that the “last thing” his clients wanted was to “prevent finding the person who killed Cédrika Provencher.” In the press scrum, Me Héroux added: “André, Huguette and Jonathan want the murderer of Cédrika Provencher to be arrested and put behind bars. »
In the short public portion of the debates at the start of the week, Mr. Héroux revealed that DNA had been discovered on “evidence” found at the site of the bones. It was not possible to learn more, since this report was not filed as evidence.
“It is certain that this week, we would have liked to have a public debate on the DNA evidence, on the physical descriptions of the suspects, the composite portraits and the identification parades and their results. It’s been postponed,” declared Me Héroux.
The PGQ lawyers did not wish to comment.