Michaël Chicoine, 32, of Wendake, pleaded guilty on Wednesday to the premeditated murder of his two boys, whom he had already admitted to killing by smothering them with a pillow in October 2020.
Judge François Huot, who had very harsh words for him, was quick to endorse the joint suggestion of the defense and the prosecution and immediately sentenced him to life in prison without the possibility of parole before 16 years and 6 months, a deadline which will be counted from the date of his incarceration in October 2020.
This plea therefore puts an end to the legal proceedings before the trial, which was to begin next January before a judge and jury.
His ability to understand the procedures had to be confirmed by a psychiatrist at the request of Judge Huot, Michaël Chicoine having a history full of mental health problems.
Photos of victims sent to their mothers
In the minutes following the double murder, Chicoine had sent photos of the two children, inert in their bed, to his own mother as well as to the mother of the children, Émilie Arsenault, from whom he had been separated for almost two years.
The murderer’s mother had immediately contacted the police, but they could only note the deaths of Alex, two years old, and Olivier, five years old.
The infanticide occurred in the context of a custody dispute.
Violence in the open court
Since the double murder, the defendant’s mental health has been repeatedly discussed, despite it being known that he was seeking to be found not criminally responsible on account of mental disorder.
On several occasions, during preliminary proceedings, he had insulted and threatened the judges involved and made a contemptuous gesture towards his ex-spouse. More recently, in October, in the middle of a hearing, he had violently attacked two constables, one of whom had been injured after taking long minutes to control him. He had also assaulted a corrections officer at the prison where he was being held.
Despite these disturbing demonstrations, he had been deemed fit to stand trial.
Pursuit of 2 million from the mother
The case caused a stir across Quebec in the wake of the death of a seven-year-old girl in Granby, because there too the Department of Youth Protection (DPJ) had been alerted, and this, at least three times, but did not intervene.
Émilie Arseneault is suing the Quebec government for two million dollars. She criticizes the DPJ for not having acted despite the fact that the agency had been contacted three times before the death of her children, information confirmed by the minister responsible for youth protection, Lionel Carmant.