A week after pleading guilty to three murders, René Kègle was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for 20 years and the relatives of the victims were able to hear poignant testimonies at the Trois-Rivières courthouse.
• Read also: René Kègle pleads guilty to three murders
On a common suggestion, accepted by Judge Raymond W. Pronovost, René Kègle will have to serve 20 years in prison before being eligible for parole, for the murders of Ophélie Martin-Cyr, Steve Lamy and Jean- Christopher Gilbert.
This is a little more than the defense would have liked, and a little less than the Crown hoped to obtain. This decision was taken in consultation with the families of the victims.
“This is the offer that the defense made to us and which seemed to suit the families despite everything”, explains the Crown prosecutor, Mr.e Benoit Larouche. For his part, the defense lawyer, Ms.e Anne-Sophie Bédard assures that her client is satisfied with the suggestion that was made.
Before the judge, relatives were able to speak directly to René Kègle.
After the prosecution described the injuries that were inflicted on Ophélie Martin-Cyr at the time of her murder, her father, Mario Cyr, rose from his chair.
In anger, he exclaimed “look at me, big dog” to the accused who had his head down and his gaze on the ground.
Steve Lamy’s sister also gave her testimony.
“You destroyed me, you took away a part of me,” she said.
Then, on behalf of cousins and cousins of Steve Lamy, she added “You who have children, can you imagine losing one of your children the same way you deleted Steve?”.
His testimony was strewn with sobs, and the words sometimes seemed difficult to pronounce.
The ex-spouse of Steve Lamy, and the mother of his son also addressed the court.
Like Steve Lamy’s sister, the testimony was difficult, and punctuated by tears.
On several occasions, René Kègle wiped his eyes with his hands.
He sometimes nodded, and seemed very attentive to what the relatives had to say.
For the families, even if the emotion is still strong, there was no question of revenge.
“It has a significant impact the fact of recalling, on sentence, different tragedies. They were people who, when they met, showed a very, very great resilience, I have rarely seen that, ”said Me Larouche.
According to the defense, the accused had intended to plead guilty for a long time.
However, since he has no memory of the events of October 2018, precautions had to be taken.
“This explains the long delay because Mr. Kègle, as I said earlier, he feels ashamed, he has remorse, he has regrets and he did not want the families victims have to undergo a trial”, shows Me Bedard.
It was also revealed that René Kègle attempted to take his own life before the start of the first trial.
This is what delayed the trial for a week.
Informed of the situation, a cousin of Steve Lamy told him “please don’t do this. Live with your nightmares like us.”
In a few sentences, René Kègle apologized to the families, particularly to Mario Cyr and Joëlle Lamy, who were present in the courtroom.
He wishes that one day, the relatives of his victims are doing better.
For the family members, this outcome will allow them to begin to put this whole story behind them.