Even if he swears not to have thrown the rock which killed a teenager at a festive evening in Rawdon, a man should take the path of detention for his involvement in the tragedy which occurred 13 years ago.
• Also read: Teenager killed during a festive evening in Rawdon: a man pleads guilty… 13 years later
“The rock that [les policiers] showed me in photos, it wasn’t me who started that one. Yes I participated, yes I was there, but the one in the photos is not me,” insisted the accused, in the Youth Chamber, at the Joliette courthouse.
However, the damage is done: the man, now 29 years old, risks a sentence of 15 months, nine in a prison and six in the community, under a joint suggestion of the parties presented on Monday. Both his identity and that of the victim are protected by order of the court.
The 16-year-old girl, whose identity is protected by the court, died after being hit by a rock.
Photo provided by family
In September, he admitted to having participated in the death of the 16-year-old girl in September 2011, during a festive evening at his home. Alcohol and cannabis had been consumed.
Far from crime
The teenager’s boyfriend had come to pick her up in a van after a conflict with her ex at the time.
As the driver was speeding back and forth in front of the house and brandishing a baseball bat, partygoers began throwing objects at the vehicle. The victim was a passenger.
“We’re going to hit him properly,” the accused, then 16 years old, is said to have said after suggesting he arm himself with rocks.
Photo LAURENT LAVOIE
One of them finally reached the young woman, who succumbed to her injuries. It was impossible to establish beyond all doubt whose hand the rock came from.
On Monday, the accused admitted that the altercation should never have escalated like this. He says he now stays away from crime, wanting to be the “best dad” for his children.
Still painful
In the middle of the courtroom, the mother of the deceased was stung by her words.
“You even asked several people to throw rocks, so maybe you didn’t intend in the morning when you got up to [la] kill, but the action you took was very voluntary,” she retorted.
The mother also made sure to stare at him when she addressed the court a few minutes before.
She said that it was her lifelong plans that evaporated 13 long years ago. The teen worked two jobs, was looking forward to his senior prom and hoped to become a legal secretary.
The victim, whose identity is being protected by the court, was horseback riding as a teenager.
Photo provided by family
“I will no longer have the chance to see her magnificent smile, to see her grow up and become a beautiful, accomplished young woman,” the lady testified.
“I will never have the chance to [la] see start a family and take your children in my arms,” she added.
Crown prosecutor Roxane Gagné agreed that “no sentence will allow us to go back in time,” but hopes that the family will be able to “move forward and begin [un] healing process” thanks to this new stage of the legal process.
The court is expected to make a decision next January.
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