Quebec man convicted of manslaughter in wife’s killing
Woman had Alzheimer’s and her death was called a compassion killing Defence lawyers argued Codotte was in a disturbed state of mind at time of killing.
MONTREAL— A Montreal man who was convicted on Saturday of killing his ailing wife said he’d finally be able to mourn her after a jury found him guilty of the lesser of the two possible charges against him.
Tears rolled down Michel Cadotte’s face as he walked from the courtroom with his lawyer’s arm around him after a jury returned a manslaughter verdict in the suffocation death of Jocelyne Lizotte, who was in the last stages of Alzheimer’s disease.
In a brief statement to reporters, Cadotte thanked the jury and said he was relieved by the verdict.
When asked how he was feeling, he mumbled, “I feel better. I’ll mourn now,” before declining to speak further.
The eight-man, four-woman jury had only two verdicts open to them: second-degree murder or manslaughter.
They had requested permission late Friday to relisten to Cadotte’s testimony, but in the end they didn’t need it, as they reached a unanimous verdict midway through the third full day of deliberations.
In convicting Cadotte of manslaughter, they sided with the defence lawyers, who had ar- gued their client was in a disturbed state of mind and acted impulsively on Feb. 20, 2017, seeking to end his wife’s suffering.
Lizotte, 60, was suffocated in her long-term care bed at a Montreal facility where she was receiving treatment for the final stages of Alzheimer’s disease, which had left her incapable of recognizing her family or taking care of herself.
The crime had been framed in the media as a compassion killing — an offence that doesn’t exist in the Criminal Code.
The trial, which began Jan. 14, heard that Cadotte had inquired about a medically assisted death for Lizotte a year before she was killed.
In thanking the jury, Quebec Superior Court Justice Helene Di Salvo acknowledged the case was “one of the most emotional” she’d heard.
Outside the courtroom, Cadotte’s lawyers said that while they were pleased with the verdict, there was no satisfaction to be found in such a tragic story.
Defence lawyer Elfriede Duclervil described Lizotte’s illness as a “tsunami” that rocked her family and caused “a long and slow work of demolition” on Cadotte.
“That’s what we told the jury, and they understood,” she said.
She declined to say what sentence the defence will suggest when sentencing hearings begin March 5. The Crown, on the other hand, had argued that Cadotte was in full control and had intended to kill his wife of 19 years, who was unable to care for herself.
A physician from the EmilieGamelin long-term care facility testified that although Lizotte had late-stage Alzheimer’s and was detached from reality, she was not deemed to be at the end of her life. She was receiving care to keep her comfortable but wasn’t at a point where palliative care was necessary.
Following the verdict, Crown prosecutor Genevieve Langlois thanked the jury and expressed sympathy for Lizotte’s family. “We hope this verdict brings them some serenity,” she said.
She said the Crown would analyze whether any errors had been committed before deciding whether to appeal. There is no minimum sentence for a manslaughter conviction.