A man who injured a woman by sexually assaulting her at a Montreal bus stop was sentenced Thursday to four years in detention. Struggling with mental health problems, Pierre Lafrance maintains that he is not a “criminal” and describes his crime as “silliness”.
” I want to leave [la prison de] Bordeaux next Monday! There’s no leftovers! No more months in Bordeaux! It’s as soon as possible! », ignited Pierre Lafrance during the hearing Thursday at the Montreal courthouse.
The 54-year-old Montrealer pleaded guilty last month to one count of sexual assault causing harm. During this hearing, he lost his temper several times. This scenario happened again on Thursday. As the hearing progressed, Pierre Lafrance became disorganized, going from screaming to sobbing. He even began to cry for his deceased mother at one point.
Very patient during the accused’s stunning monologues, Judge Flavia K. Longo finally rendered her decision in the absence of Pierre Lafrance given the “deterioration” of his condition. She endorsed the common suggestion of four years of imprisonment taking into account the “gratuitousness” of the crime and the mental state of the accused.
Pierre Lafrance has suffered from schizophrenia for years. He has also been hospitalized 13 times at the Philippe-Pinel Institute of Forensic Psychiatry since the 1980s. A psychiatrist, however, found him criminally responsible for the attack committed on October 25, 2022.
Pierre Lafrance attacked a woman who was waiting for the bus near Maisonneuve Park, in eastern Montreal. A woman targeted at random. The attack was very violent. He grabbed the woman by the throat and threw her to the ground. He injured her by scratching her genitals during the sexual assault. He even grabbed the victim’s head with both hands to hit him on the ground several times.
The victim, a young woman with a youthful face, read a letter to the court Thursday to recount the consequences of the attack. Since the events, she has been forced to move and lives in fear. “I no longer feel the same security as before,” she confided, through a translator.
During the hearing, Pierre Lafrance continued to downplay his actions and call for his early release. “It’s going to be there!” I have the right to freedom! It’s done, it’s done,” he said. The accused then promised the judge to remain “single” all his life. “It’s over, women!” “, he assured.
“I attacked a 30-year-old woman, and I pay the debt, I pay 18 months in prison, let’s see! It won’t be the same in 2024! », added the attacker.
Me Charles Doucet represented the public prosecutor, while Me Sonia Bilodeau defended the accused.