Crown wants higher court to increase sentence for PQ rally shooter Richard Bain
Bain found guilty of 2nd-degree murder for 2012 election-night shooting in downtown Montreal
The Crown will ask the Quebec Court of Appeal to increase Richard Bain's sentence from 20 to 25 years in prison before he's eligible to apply for parole, CBC News has learned.
"The gravity of the offence and the circumstances of its commission mandated that the maximum sentence be imposed," prosecutor Dennis Galiatsatos wrote in a notice filed before the Quebec Court of Appeal.
According to court documents, Galiatsatos intends to argue this case "was so exceptionally egregious" that the higher court should apply the maximum sentence.
Bain was found guilty of second-degree murder and three counts of attempted murder for the deadly 2012 shooting outside the Parti Québécois's election-night victory rally.
With a single bullet fired from his semi-automatic rifle, he shot and killed lighting technician Denis Blanchette and seriously injured stagehand Dave Courage.
Defence lawyer Alan Guttman has already filed a request to appeal his client's sentence.
He contends Bain should receive the minimum of 10 years, considering his lack of a criminal record and his mental state at the time of the attack.
The Crown also plans to contest that.
'A bloodbath of unspeakable proportions'
During sentencing arguments earlier this fall, Galiatsatos argued the attack outside Montreal's Metropolis would have been "a bloodbath of unspeakable proportions" if Bain's gun didn't jam, and if police had not intervened.
"It was an assembly of citizens celebrating democracy ... freedom of speech, cherished rights of Canadians," he said.
For his part, Guttman pointed out that the 1984 National Assembly shooter, Denis Lortie, got the minimum for his second-degree murder conviction.
Ultimately, Quebec Superior Court Justice Guy Cournoyer decided on 20 years before a chance of parole.