Quebec City drunk driver sentenced to 16 years for killing 4 members of family
CBC
The Quebec City driver who killed two children, their mother and their grandfather last fall when his car crashed into theirs has been sentenced to 16 years in prison — the harshest sentence ever handed out by a Quebec court for a crime committed under similar circumstances.
Éric Légaré, 44, was under the influence of alcohol and speeding when the vehicle he was driving crashed into three other vehicles waiting for a left-turn signal at an intersection in Beauport, Que., on Sept. 2, 2021.
Emma Lemieux, 10, her half-brother Jackson Fortin, 14, their mother, Shellie Fletcher-Lemieux, 44, and grandfather, James Fletcher, 68, all died of injuries sustained in the collision.
"It's not a question here of determining the cost of a life," said Quebec court Judge Jean-Louis Lemay at Légaré's sentencing hearing in a Quebec City courtroom Friday.
"This is not a simple math calculation."
Lemay said his job was to determine a just sentence based on objective facts, the law and legal precedence. He said it is important to match the severity of a sentence to society's evolving view of the act of driving under the influence.
The courtroom was packed with relatives of the victims and of the convicted man, who waited attentively to hear the sentence. Jean-Dominic Lemieux, Emma's father and Shellie's husband of nine years, was notably absent.
Last December, Légaré pleaded guilty to 19 charges of dangerous driving causing death and injuries and driving while under the influence.
He had been drinking at a bar in Quebec City's Saint-Roch neighbourhood before the crash, consuming a total of seven glasses of wine, plus another three shots of alcohol. He was driving at a speed of 130 km/h on the Dufferin-Montmorency highway in Beauport, on the outskirts of Quebec City, when he struck the stopped vehicles.
The Crown sought an 18- to 20-year prison term for Légaré and a lifelong driving ban, arguing a severe sentence was necessary to dissuade him and others from drinking and driving.
The defence argued a 10-year sentence would be more appropriate, arguing others who have been convicted for drunk driving in similar circumstances have been sentenced to between six and 14 years.
Légaré's lawyer, Vincent Montmigny, also said his client deeply regretted his actions.
During his trial testimony, Légaré had burst into tears and expressed his remorse to the victims' families, saying he had regular nightmares about what he had done.
He admitted to drinking and smoking weed more frequently in the months before the crash because of difficulties in his personal life.
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