The man accused of killing a 50-year-old man on the eve of retirement in a violent collision on Highway 50 in 2019 claims he may have dropped his breathalyzer device in the seconds before the impact.
At least, this is the thesis presented on Tuesday morning by Me Robert Bellefeuille, during the defense pleadings of Jano Vincent, at his trial which has been taking place for a month and a half, at the Saint-Jérôme courthouse.
The criminal lawyer explained to the jury that his client, although he says he has no memory of the event of October 6, 2019, formed this hypothesis after the preliminary inquiry, during which he heard the prosecution’s evidence, about a year ago.
“What I understand is that when it rang, [le dispositif] would have fallen on the floor under the dashboard. I wanted to pick it up, my hand was on the steering wheel…”, quoted Me Bellefeuille, to echo Vincent’s thoughts.
The 37-year-old is charged with second-degree murder in the death of Robert Campion.
Problems
On the day of the collision, Vincent was driving on Highway 50 in his black pick-up truck near Grenville-sur-la-Rouge in Outaouais.
At around 12:40pm, the carpenter was involved in a violent confrontation with Mr Campion’s camper. The 59-year-old outdoor enthusiast sadly did not survive.
According to the prosecution’s theory, the accused deliberately caused the accident in order to end his life, as he allegedly had many personal and financial problems.
“As you know, our theory is that it was accidental. He did not mean to kill himself,” argued the defense attorney, recalling that a firefighter, who witnessed the scene, mentioned seeing the truck gradually swerve.
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“Mr. Vincent’s thesis is that shortly before the impact, he was concerned… [l’éthylomètre] rings. When it rings, he has to blow. He has no choice,” he said, justifying the fact that he dropped his device, which was allegedly lying in the cup holder.
However, this element had not been submitted to the jury during the accused’s testimony in chief.
The Crown, represented by Me Steve Baribeau and Me Alexandre Dubois, will plead this afternoon.
More details to come.
