Suspect in sword attack makes court appearance

QUEBEC • The man charged in connection with the Halloween night sword attack in Quebec City appeared briefly before a judge Thursday and will see his case return to court in two weeks.

Carl Girouard, 24, appeared virtually in a Quebec City courtroom from the detention centre where he’s been held since the attacks over the weekend that left two dead and five injured. Girouard, from the off-island Montreal suburb of Ste-Therese, is charged with two counts of first-degree murder and five counts of attempted murder.

His case was put off until Nov. 20 and prior to then, the Crown will disclose evidence to Girouard’s lawyer, Benoit Labrecque. Prosecutor François Godin said about 80 per cent of the evidence should be disclosed by the next court date.

Quebec court Judge Rene de la Sablonniere granted Godin’s request to lift the publication ban on the identities of four of the five victims who survived the attack. The ban on the fifth victim remains. The people killed were François Duchesne, 56, a museum employee, and Suzanne Clermont, 61, a hairdresser.

Girouard, sporting a moustache and long brown hair, seemed to be listening

ATTACKER ALLEGEDLY SWUNG A KATANA-LIKE

SWORD AT RANDOM.

intently during the brief hearing, using a headset. He replied in a clear voice when questioned by the judge if he understood what was going on.

A man dressed in a medieval costume and wielding a Japanese-style sword went on a rampage late Saturday night before being chased down on foot and arrested by police a few hours later.

Quebec City police chief Robert Pigeon told a news conference on Sunday the attacker allegedly swung a katana-like sword at randomly chosen victims “with the clear intention of taking as many victims as possible.”

Pigeon said the suspect had no known criminal record but said that during an unspecified "medical context,' about five years ago, the suspect had allegedly shared plans to commit a similar crime.

Godin told reporters outside the courtroom the presumption is Girouard is of sound mind, but said the defence will be able to raise the issue of the suspect’s mental health later in the proceedings.

“In the Criminal Code there is a presumption that people are deemed to be sane,” Godin told reporters. “If ever Mr. Girouard intends to assert a defence to this effect, he will be able to do so at the appropriate time.”