The case of Richard Henry Bain was before the Quebec Court of Appeal this morning, with the convicted gunman asking to spend less time in prison before being eligible for parole.
Bain was 66 when he was sentenced in November 2016 to life in prison with no chance at parole for 20 years for shooting and killing one person and wounding three others on the night of the 2012 Quebec election.
Bain shot at a crowd of people gathered outside the Metropolis concert venue where PQ leader Pauline Marois was delivering her victory speech after the party had won.
Crown prosecutor Maude Payette argued that Bain deserves to stay behind bars for at least 25 years before asking for parole because he committed one of the worst crimes in modern history in Canada and attempted to commit a mass murder of a political nature.
Appeal court judges on chance at parole at 20 or 25 years for Richard Henry #Bain: he'll be 86 or 91- how does that change anything? Crown says because of seriousness of crime, circumstances, #Bain's moral responsibility, he should get the maximum. #CJAD800
— Shuyee Lee (@sleeCJAD) October 30, 2018
Bain's lawyer Alan Guttman disagreed, saying 10 years is enough. Guttman argued the judge made several errors: he put too much emphasis on the political aspect of the crime; he didn't ask the jury for a sentencing recommendation; and he didn't consider Bain's character - a disturbed individual who was always employed and never committed a crime before.
"If it were not political, (parole eligibility) would have been nowhere near 20 (years)." - lawyer for Richard Henry #Bain. #CJAD800
— Shuyee Lee (@sleeCJAD) October 30, 2018
Guttman also argued that even Denis Lortie, the gunman who fatally shot three people at the National Assembly, was up for parole after ten years.
Payette said the big difference is that the judge found that mental health was a factor in Lortie's case and that wasn't the case for Bain.
The five appeal court judges have taken the case under deliberation and will render a ruling at a later date.