Amélie Lapointe-Fortier should have left the Leclerc establishment on March 7, after having spent some time there in pre-trial detention. But due to an “administrative error”, she was not released until four days later. A stay, she says, spent in a “hellish climate”, which could have been even shorter if the establishment had accepted card payments.
On the night of March 3 to 4, an argument broke out between Mme Lapointe-Fortier and his roommate. Called to the scene, the police arrested the 35-year-old woman and took her to the police station. Shortly after, they transferred her to the Leclerc detention facility in Laval. On the morning of March 4, she was brought, handcuffed and handcuffed, to the Montreal courthouse.
There, Mme Lapointe-Fortier is accused of mischief, of having uttered threats and of having inflicted bodily harm on the complainant. Charges to which she pleads not guilty and which have not yet been tested in court.
The next day, during his release hearing, he was ordered to pay $150 bail. However, she learns that it is impossible for her to pay by bank card – only cash is accepted at the Leclerc establishment. “I didn’t have any money with me, so I couldn’t go out,” laments Mme Lapointe-Fortier, in interview with The Press. Lawyer Vanessa Sadler, who represents Mme Lapointe-Fortier, was also unaware that card payments were not processed at this detention center.
However, the Ministry of Public Security (MSP) confirms it: the Leclerc establishment “is not able to accept payment of monetary deposits by card”. And this is because it does not “have a point-of-sale terminal from the Quebec Ministry of Justice”.
“Administrative error”
The system’s mess doesn’t stop there. She was transferred to a more populous wing and, she says, struggled to contact her lawyer. She finally succeeds, and Me Sadler schedules a new hearing. On March 7, the defendant appeared again and saw her bail lifted in favor of a larger commitment. If she does not respect the conditions imposed on her – including not going near her roommate – she will have to pay a sum of $350.
I was happy, I thought I was going to sign [un document] and be released afterwards.
Amélie Lapointe-Fortier
“In my head, she was going out with a signature,” confirms Me Sadler. The lawyer believes that this is when the illegal detention of her client began.
PHOTO ALAIN ROBERGE, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
The Leclerc detention facility, in Laval
At the Leclerc establishment, “they kept telling me that I had to pay $150 in cash, I didn’t understand anything,” explains M.me Lapointe-Fortier. Until March 11, when she was finally released, she “walked along the walls”.
Over there, people argue over crumbs. I was trying to be on my own, not to bother anyone, but it’s a really stressful environment.
Amélie Lapointe-Fortier
In February 2023, a request to take class action was filed in the Superior Court due to the “inhumane treatment of women incarcerated at the Leclerc establishment”. “All women detained at Leclerc are victims of violations of their fundamental rights,” it read. The hearing on this request is scheduled to take place on May 20.
Joined by The Press with a statement of facts, the Ministry of Public Security confirmed that a “person incarcerated at [l’établissement Leclerc] was allegedly illegally detained from March 7 to 11. This situation, explains the Ministry, “would result from an administrative error leading to a delay in the processing of a legal document”.
M’s stayme Lapointe-Fortier still haunts her today and left her with a question in mind… “How can it be that the prison environment works like this?” »
Hundreds of cases
According to what the daily reported Globe and Mail last May, more than 450 people were illegally detained for at least one day in Quebec, between January 2012 and March 2022. Of this number, 53 spent more than a week behind bars.
Read the article from Globe and Mail “Quebec illegally detained hundreds of people for days to months, documents show” (in English)
In December 2022, the case of Nicous D’Andre Spring, who died after an intervention by correctional officers at Bordeaux prison, made the headlines. The 21-year-old young man was in illegal detention at the time of the intervention which led to his death.
The MSP says it deplores these situations and ensures that it makes “all necessary efforts to prevent errors from occurring”, as was the case for Mme Lapointe-Fortier. “Any person who believes they have been incarcerated unjustly or for too long due to an administrative error can request compensation,” he recalls.
Compensation or not, Amélie Lapointe-Fortier considers it “inconceivable to detain people” who should not be. “We risk losing everything” in such circumstances, she said.