Quebec government lawyers on Monday asked the court for more time to investigate details of six threats allegedly made against former Parti Québécois (PQ) leader Pauline Marois on the day of the 2012 provincial elections. .
According to an ongoing civil lawsuit, in the hours before the election night shooting that left one dead and one injured, six threats were made against the leader of QP. Information about the threats is contained in a Sûreté du Québec document that was kept from the public until recently.
The Superior Court of Quebec is hearing a lawsuit brought by four technicians who worked in Metropolis the night Ms. Marois in his victory speech on September 4, 2012. A gunman shot and killed lighting technician Denis Blanchette outside the hall, and a second technician, David Courage, was wounded after being hit by the same bullet that killed his colleague. .
Plaintiffs allege that police did not do enough to assess the risks associated with the event and that there was no police monitoring outside the back door of the area or in other key areas. They said they suffered post-traumatic stress and other psychological damage from the hunt. They sued the City of Montreal and the Attorney General of Quebec for a total of more than $ 600,000.
Last week, Judge Philippe Belanger asked government lawyers to provide information about the threats after none of the witnesses were able to provide details, including the nature of the threats and who investigated.
Witnesses, however, pointed out that none of the threats involved Richard Henry Bain, who was convicted in 2016 of second-degree murder and three counts of attempted murder for shooting and arson outside the Metropolis concert hall.
On Monday, government attorney Julien Bernard told the court his team needed more time to interview witnesses and locate the officers who investigated the threats.
Documents to answer the judge’s questions were not found, Bernard said, adding that many police officers have retired in the decade since the 2012 election and need to be found.
Attorney Virginie Dufresne-Lemire, representing the four technicians, stressed that she found amazing that the details of the six threats do not exist.
The trial will resume on May 9.
Source: Radio-Canada
