The 26-year-old man who carried out the sword attacks in Quebec City on Halloween has been found guilty of two counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of Francois Duchamp, 56, and Susan Clermont, 61, on October 31, 2020.
The 11-judge jury handed down its verdict in a Quebec court on Friday, after nearly five days of deliberation.
Carl Giroud was also convicted of five counts of attempted murder for his attacks on five others last night.
The jury had a freshly shaven head and stood up as the jury handed down its verdict. He looked stiff and stoic as he listened.
Lisa Mahmoud, one of the survivors, was present in the courtroom. She could be seen holding hands with a friend and Susan Clermont’s daughter-in-law while they awaited sentencing.
Mahmoud said he was really relieved by the sentence.
“It’s hard for me to rejoice in the misery of others, but I’m really happy that the jury made the right decision,” she said.
“He’s going to have a very bad life and that’s what he chose.”
Mahmoud said experiencing the events of that day and seeing Giroud again during the trial was difficult, but that she was pleased to be able to share her story in court.
Giroud attacked Mahmoud at least 10 times with a sword, including stabbing her in the stomach. Mahmoud drew his sword from her belly as her friend distracted Giroud. Then they both ran away.
She said she was still angry and working hard in rehab to try to regain her motor skills, hoping to return to hairdressing.
“I feel stronger now. I am 26 years old. My life is ahead of me, “said Mahmoud. “He is not the master of my life, nor of his own life now,” she added, referring to Giroud.
Clermont’s daughter-in-law, Marie-Claude Veilo, said she was also pleased with the decision.
“Society will be protected from this dangerous individual. Unfortunately, it is too late for Susanna Clermont and Francois Duchamp,” Veyo told reporters at the courtroom.
“[The verdict] it will not bring our loved ones back, but at least it will protect society. “
Veilleux said attending the trial was difficult, but said it was her duty to be there every day.
The Crown claims that Giroud had been thinking about carrying out the attacks for years and was aware of what he was doing during his crimes.
Two Crown expert witnesses testified that the defendant was an overly alert narcissist who felt the need to do something shocking in order to gain public recognition.
Crown prosecutor Francois Godin, left, and Carl Giroud’s lawyer, Pierre Gagnon, right, delivered their closing arguments in a Quebec courtroom last week. (Dave St. Amant / CBC)
The defense team to appeal
Giroud’s lawyer, Pierre Gagnon, said his client was disappointed with the decision and intended to appeal.
“The verdict is clearly not in line with the arguments we presented to the jury,” Gagnon said.
He said the four days the jury spent discussing allowed the defense team to review what happened during the trial and identify aspects they could use in an appeal.
This includes the five hours the prosecutor spent questioning Giroud and his interpretation of Giroard’s lack of answers before the jury.
Giroud admitted that he carried out the attacks, but his defense team claims that he cannot be held criminally liable because he was deluded in psychosis at the time and as a result could not distinguish right from wrong.
During the trial, Giroud testified that he was facing an internal battle between two Carls, the “real” and the “bad Carl”, obsessed with killing.
The Crown said Giroud could not have been mistaken at the time because he showed signs of hesitation before the attacks and expressed doubts about what he was doing after hitting his first few victims.
Forensic psychiatrist Dr. Sylvain Fosher, who testified on behalf of the Crown, explained that delusion is an irrefutable belief and that it is impossible to get rid of it so quickly without medication.
Forensic psychiatrist Sylvain Fosher, left, and neuropsychologist William Pottier, right, testified on behalf of the Crown. (Radio Canada)
Prosecutors have shown evidence that Giroud had planned the attack since he was a teenager: he drove twice to Quebec City’s historic quarter two years before the events, prepared his suit in advance and removed some tattoos that Giroud considered “unclean.”
The jury, made up of four men and seven women, heard that Giroud had first told a social worker and school counselor about his mission at the age of 18.
The sentencing hearing is scheduled for June
Giroud faces up to life in prison and will not be entitled to parole for at least 25 years. His trial, which began on April 11, had to be postponed twice after some jurors tested positive for COVID-19.
He will be in court again on June 10 to hear his sentence. Many victims intend to testify at this hearing, the prosecutor informed the prosecutor.
The crown is awaiting the Supreme Court’s ruling in the case of the shooter at a mosque in Quebec. The Supreme Court is due to rule on May 27 on whether a person can serve consecutive sentences for killing multiple people.
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