TheeBadOne
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Pleads self-defence in highway shooting
Stéphane Boucher said it was either kill or be killed.
Testifying yesterday in his trial for the first-degree murder of a Montreal police officer, he said Constable Benoît L'Écuyer shot at him first - he had no choice but to shoot back.
"Anyone else would have done the same," Boucher, 26, told the jury yesterday, with a constable standing just behind the witness stand at all times.
"He had shot at me twice. Was I supposed to wait for him to shoot at me a third time and kill me?"
Boucher's testimony follows that of eight witnesses.
All eight said they saw him gun down L'Écuyer on eastbound Highway 40 on Feb. 28, 2002. Only one of them, retired engineer Raymond Crevier, said he saw L'Écuyer fire two shots first.
The defendant testified yesterday he was on his way to commit an armed robbery that morning with the two passengers in his car - one a drug dealer, the other a prostitute. Having stopped to steal a car for the getaway, Boucher spotted police approaching him.
Despite being only 24 at the time, Boucher had a long list of convictions, mainly for armed robbery, the court heard, and he was on probation from his latest conviction in June 2001. He was sure there was an arrest warrant out for him because he hadn't respected his parole conditions, he said, so he did not want to be stopped.
The real problem, however, was the loaded revolver tucked under his belt.
At first he looked for a side street to drop off the gun, he said. But after he had lost a wheel in the ensuing car chase, and the police had forced him to the side of the road, he took off on foot, thinking he would throw the gun in the field on the other side of the highway.
He didn't expect police to run after him through rush-hour traffic, he said.
So when he heard what sounded like a first shot above the noise of traffic, he didn't pay it much mind, concentrating more on not getting hit by a car. A second shot, and the "burning sensation" in his hand that he said was caused by a grazing bullet, made him conscious of being shot at.
Boucher said he took out his gun, turned and was surprised to see L'Écuyer about eight metres away.
L'Écuyer had a gun at his side and was about to raise it, Boucher said, so Boucher fired two or three bullets. L'Écuyer bent forward, then prepared to shoot again, Boucher said, so he fired his remaining bullets, for a total of six.
Forensic evidence showed L'Écuyer was shot four or five times. The fatal bullet pierced his lung and heart.
"I thought he wanted to kill me," Boucher testified. "I didn't have time to think. I didn't want to die."
Crown prosecutor Raymond Chénier asked Boucher why he didn't just give himself up - when the police intercepted the car, for instance. "I wanted to get rid of the gun first," Boucher repeated.
And why, Chénier continued, didn't he give himself up when he heard shots, or simply drop his gun when he turned around and found L'Écuyer not far away? "If I had, I wouldn't be here today," Boucher said.
http://www.canada.com/montreal/montrealgazette/story.asp?id=989F56D9-7D7C-4DB2-B910-6113E98A677E
Stéphane Boucher said it was either kill or be killed.
Testifying yesterday in his trial for the first-degree murder of a Montreal police officer, he said Constable Benoît L'Écuyer shot at him first - he had no choice but to shoot back.
"Anyone else would have done the same," Boucher, 26, told the jury yesterday, with a constable standing just behind the witness stand at all times.
"He had shot at me twice. Was I supposed to wait for him to shoot at me a third time and kill me?"
Boucher's testimony follows that of eight witnesses.
All eight said they saw him gun down L'Écuyer on eastbound Highway 40 on Feb. 28, 2002. Only one of them, retired engineer Raymond Crevier, said he saw L'Écuyer fire two shots first.
The defendant testified yesterday he was on his way to commit an armed robbery that morning with the two passengers in his car - one a drug dealer, the other a prostitute. Having stopped to steal a car for the getaway, Boucher spotted police approaching him.
Despite being only 24 at the time, Boucher had a long list of convictions, mainly for armed robbery, the court heard, and he was on probation from his latest conviction in June 2001. He was sure there was an arrest warrant out for him because he hadn't respected his parole conditions, he said, so he did not want to be stopped.
The real problem, however, was the loaded revolver tucked under his belt.
At first he looked for a side street to drop off the gun, he said. But after he had lost a wheel in the ensuing car chase, and the police had forced him to the side of the road, he took off on foot, thinking he would throw the gun in the field on the other side of the highway.
He didn't expect police to run after him through rush-hour traffic, he said.
So when he heard what sounded like a first shot above the noise of traffic, he didn't pay it much mind, concentrating more on not getting hit by a car. A second shot, and the "burning sensation" in his hand that he said was caused by a grazing bullet, made him conscious of being shot at.
Boucher said he took out his gun, turned and was surprised to see L'Écuyer about eight metres away.
L'Écuyer had a gun at his side and was about to raise it, Boucher said, so Boucher fired two or three bullets. L'Écuyer bent forward, then prepared to shoot again, Boucher said, so he fired his remaining bullets, for a total of six.
Forensic evidence showed L'Écuyer was shot four or five times. The fatal bullet pierced his lung and heart.
"I thought he wanted to kill me," Boucher testified. "I didn't have time to think. I didn't want to die."
Crown prosecutor Raymond Chénier asked Boucher why he didn't just give himself up - when the police intercepted the car, for instance. "I wanted to get rid of the gun first," Boucher repeated.
And why, Chénier continued, didn't he give himself up when he heard shots, or simply drop his gun when he turned around and found L'Écuyer not far away? "If I had, I wouldn't be here today," Boucher said.
http://www.canada.com/montreal/montrealgazette/story.asp?id=989F56D9-7D7C-4DB2-B910-6113E98A677E
