DEATHBEDSIDE MANNER-Dan Zupansky

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yours truly se. Turcott was born on April twenty first, nineteen seventy two. He worked with Isabelle Gaston at Hotel de de Saint Jerome Hospital as a cardiologist. He fell in love with Gaston in Quebec City in nineteen ninety nine. They moved in together in two thousand, but the relationship was characterized by domestic violence from both parties. Turcott moved out, but soon reconciled with Gaston after promising to work on

their relationship. The relationship improved and Turcott proposed to Gaston at Mount Washington, New Hampshire. Gaston accepted his proposal and they were soon married. Their son, Olivier, was born in two thousand and four, and then two years later their daughter Anne Sophie. In mid January two thousand and nine, shortly before Gaston and Turcott planned to leave for a trip to Mexico with their children, Turcott was informed that his wife was having an affair with their personal trainer

and friend, Martin Hewitt. Hewitt's girlfriend, Patricia Guerreau, notified Turcott of the affair and provided emails exchange between Hewitt and Gaston. Turcott and Gaston decided to separate. Two days after coming home from their trip, Turcott left the family residence. Gaston and the children stayed in the house, and both parents agreed to share custody. During the separation between conversations between

Turcott and Gaston were often very heated. On February eighth, Turcott found out that his children had been to a Quebec carnival with their mother and Woitt. The carnival had special meaning to him since he had lived in Quebec City and attended the carnival for many years. I could not accept that Martin spent time with my children as if I was being replaced. The next day, a former neighbor told Turcott that the day he left who it had spent the night and had been staying there almost

every night for the past two weeks. Turcott said the information made him flip, and on February tenth he went to the family residence to fetch his son's sweater and found Hewett in the kitchen. Turcott said, you stole my wife, you betrayed me, you were my friend, and he punched to it in the face before leaving the house. On February twentieth, Turcott dropped by the house again, and this time Gaston ordered him to leave, telling him you are

going to stop controlling my life now. If I want to, I can change the children's names, I can get custody. I can move anywhere in Quebec. That day, while he was at work, colleagues noted no outward signs of distress. He exchanged emails with Gaston and also picked up his children from daycare and school. He telephoned Gaston later and she informed him that she had changed the locks on the house and consulted with a lawyer. He replied, if you want war, you will get it. After putting the

children to bed, he read dated emails from Gaston and Hewitt. Afterwards, he began searching the Internet for sites with information on how best to commit suicide. The next morning, February twenty one, two thousand and nine, two police officers followed up on a call placed to nine point one after the respondent

had expressed suicidal thoughts to his mother. When they entered the respondent's home, the officers discovered the bodies of two children, a boy and a girl, in their beds, stabbed forty six times in their upper bodies, twenty seven times for Olivier and nineteen times for an Sophie. Turcott was discovered under his bed, covered in vomit and blood. He told police he drunk windshield wipe or fluid and wanted to die.

He was taken to the Saint Jerome Health and Social Service Center, where doctors there realized the man was one of their colleagues, a cardiologist. Hospital director Francois Verin confirmed the man was having marital problems with his wife, who was also a doctor at the hospital. The two had worked there together for about six years. Doctors decided to transferre Turcott to a hospital in Montreal, where he remained in stable condition. Quebec Provincial police took over the investigation

returned to the scene. Autopsies on the siblings were expected to take place in Montreal to determine the cause of death. Police contacted the children's mother, who was on a ski trip. Gee Turcott was charged with two counts of first degree murdered for the deaths of his two children. The trial began on April twelfth, two thousand and eleven. Defense lawyer Pierre Poupar told the jurors at the start of the trial that they'd have to determine whether the once prominent

cardiologist intended to kill his children. What's really at stake is what did he have in his head why? Poupar said, did Guy Turcott, a human being, cause the death of his kids with the intention of doing so? In a statement filed by his defense lawyer Pierre Poupar, Turcott admitted he committed an i legal act and caused the death of his two children, but claimed it wasn't a premanitated act.

Poupar told the jurors that they will have to determine turqu he got, state of mind at the time of the crimes, and whether he knew what he was doing. The defense's first witness was Turcott's own mother, Marguerite Fournier, who presented the jury with a booklet of photos of Turcott and his children, depicting the kids at play, at Christmas, on birthdays, on outings, and when traveling. Each photo brought

quiet sobbing from the accused. Turcott's mother testified about the last phone conversation she had with her son before the children were killed. Turcott lamented his failed marriage to Isabel Gaston, from whom he had separated just a month earlier. Fournier said her son sounded depressed and told her Gaston was cheating on him. It has been going on for weeks. It was happening in my house, in my bed. His mother advised him to look forward, but her son didn't

seem to hear her. But then he said something that struck her as out of character. I love you. Tell Dad, I love him. She remembered her son repeating those words over and over during the hour long conversation. When I heard that discourse, I was afraid he was about to take his own life. Fearful he'd been drinking. Fournie wanted to drive to her sons that night, but her husband

had told her to wait. The next morning, she drove to the house, finding the shades drawn, no sound coming from inside, and no one answering the phone or the loud knocking on the door. Maybe my husband still had hope things were okay, but I had no hope at all, she testified. Fournier's chilling nine one one call pleading with police to hurry to the rented home, was played in court. Turcotte sobbed in court as Crown Prosecutor Claudia Carboneau outline

the details of the double slaying. A crime scene technician gave jurors a view inside the home, two knives, two blood stained beds, a near empty windshield washer container in a bathroom, and vomit on the floors. The couple's life coach recounted that Turcott had told them the little boy pleaded with his father to stop. He was stabbed twenty seven times, while autopsy results showed the five year old

Olivier tried to defend himself from the attack. Witnesses who encountered Turcott at the hospital following his arrest told jurors he asked not to receive medical treatment, with a nurse, Chantelle Dulmo, testifying that he said he killed his children to spite his wife. He said he wanted to make her angry, and the way to do so was to take away from her what was most precious, the concentrade.

The concentration of methanol in Guy Turcotte's blood was the equivalent of between three and five beers for an average sized man. A defense witness testified. The same witness. Toxicologist Anne Marie Fauchaier testified she found a potentially fatal dose

of methanol in Turcotte's system. The day after the February two thousand and nine slayings, under cross examination by the Crown prosecutor, fuq said she estimated someone who has consumed that much beer is conscious, coherent, and able to have discussions and negotiate. Fauquher said such a person is quite capable of doing what he has to do, but had noted in her initial testimony one's level awareness can be

reduced after consuming such levels of methanol. She explained that the effects of methanol and the human body are similar to those from the consumption of ethanol, the alcohol found in wine or beer, but with less of an impact. Prosecutor Rene Veret questioned her experience on methanol intoxication, with Faquar replying that she had worked only on three or four similar cases and the only survivor was Turcott. Evidence presented, though had not established the quantity of washer fluid he

had consumed. Later, Claude Relard, an expert in neuropharmacology, said methanol does result in memory loss. He referred to a scientific article regarding a mass poisoning in New York in nineteen fifty three, where people had been drinking a mix of fake whiskey and methyl alcohol or methanol. Several people ended up going to hospital to be treated and had suffered major memory loss. Some couldn't recall setting foot in the hospital how they got there, but they appeared rational

when observed by medical personnel. On May ninth, Ghee Turcott took the stand, Speaking slowly but clearly. Turcott spoke about a childhood where he was the awkward outcast, about his eleven year journey to become a cardiologist, and how he came to meet his now estranged wife. He was born third of six children in a suburb south of Montreal and grew up in a devout Catholic family in an

overflowing house where there wasn't much communication. He was not very popular, not very athletic, and his early years were tough. He was the target of jeering and always the last person to be chose on teams. I was a little guy everyone laughed at and made fun of. I wore big glasses and I was timid. He said. He had a number of relationships, but everything changed when he met Isabelle Gaston at happy hour in a Quebec city bar in nineteen ninety nine. I was attracted to her right away.

We spent the whole night together and I fell in love with her that day. He described Gaston as having lots of charm, smiling, full of energy, intelligent and a leader. I found myself lucky to be with this girl. I was surprised she was attracted to a guy like me. I think I'm pretty ordinary, and she was just so hot.

He told of the couple splitting once in two thousand and one following an argument where punches were thrown by both of them, but after a few months the relationship was rekindled, and not long after he proposed to her on Mount Washington. His demeanor on the stand was more composed and earlier in the day, when he sobbed as his lawyer's tabled photos of him playing with his children and celebrating birthdays and holidays. In his testimony, Turcotte also

recalled disordered scenes of the murder event. He is standing in his son's room. He has a knife in his hands and stabs his son. His son cries out no and moves away from him. He realizes that he is hurting him. He panics and stabs him more. He has a similar memory with respect to his daughter. He sees himself in the bathroom, he drinks windshield wipe or fluid. He has blood on his hands, he has hurt his children and looks for the knife to stab himself in

the heart, but cannot find it on the stand. The Crown asked Turcott about a phone call he made to his colleagues at Hotel the hospital after he was arrested and jailed. In the call, Turcott mentioned his desire to collect the check for three hundred and fifty three dollars and that he had wanted to leave his calculator to

a co worker. Turcott replied that at the time, after being in jail for eight days, he was having difficulty coping with flashbacks of the deaths of his children, and that he decided to kill himself, and before he ended his life, he wanted to make sure all his affairs were in order. The Crown also questioned Turkott about the events of the knight of the two killings and why he did not take his own life that night. You

stabbed your children forty six times. Why didn't you have the courage and the strength to stab yourself even once? Asked the prosecutor, Turcotte said he won to stab himself but could not find a knife he used to kill his children. How did you not see the knives? How would you like me to explain it, replied Turcott, elaborating that his memory of the events of that night was

still shaky. Previous witness had explained how a knife was found under Olivier's body, and that a second knife was found on the edge of a bathtub near Turcott's bedroom. Now finally testifying, Isabel gastonutun turned to her former husband in the prisoner's box. You weren't a bad father that I know, she said, sobbing, and I'll never say you were a bad father. Never. About half the courtroom wept

while listening to Gaston's testimony. She testified that the couple always had its problems, but she never believed Turcott would ever hurt his own children. The testimony was so highly anticipated that members of the public began lining up an hour and a half before the courthouse opened just to get a seat. While she often broke down on the stand, Gostell plowed through nearly two hours of testimony, recalling the

final moments with her children. She dressed Olivier the morning of February twenty and gave him a kiss as he went off to school. He waved back at her the final time. Gastall saw him a few hours later and Sophie would be opped off at daycare, But before setting off, Gaston scurried around the car for her daily exchange of a minimum of twenty kisses with the toddler, who was sitting in the child's seat. Do you know how much I love you, Gaston says, the little girl told her

as they shared their kisses. The jury also heard that tensions had flared for an unteented and final time between Gaston and Turcotte when she had the locks changed at the home. She switched them following a number of run ins between her ex and her new boyfriend, Martin Woitt. She testified that Turcott was livid. You want a war, You'll get a war, she recalled him, saying over the phone. Gaston panicked at the threat, but she felt the warning was related to money. She ended up deciding to go

on a girl's weekend northeast to Quebec City. The next day, the kids were found dead. About it on the news. I feel stupid for not thinking that he'd hurt the kids. Gastall said, I never thought for a second he'd do that. Gaston, an emergency room physician at Hotel the Hospital in Saint Jerome, also cried as she told the jury about her relationship with Turcotte, which began when they were medical students in

nineteen ninety nine. From the beginning, we had our ups and downs, Gastell said, In ten years, I couldn't say it was all black or all white. The couple fought and fought a lot about everything from parenting and money to intimacy and kids extracurricular activities. Gaston said she tried to improve their relationship through reading self help books and

employing a life coach. Despite the good that came with Olivier's birth in two thousand and three and and Sophie's in two thousand and five, there was plenty of bad. Gastall said. They separated once early on while dating, after she found gay porn on his computer. She found more gay porn again in two thousand and eight. Although she

confronted him, Turcott vehemently denied being gay. That discovery, coupled with the arguments and a lack of intimacy in their marriage would be the beginning of the end, she said. Gaston began a new relationship with Hewitt, a personal trainer of theirs. It blossomed quickly, but she decided to keep it secret. I regret today not having told Ghee myself earlier, Gaston said, referring to how Turcott heard the news from a third party from Hewitt's X. I waited because of Anne,

Sophie and Olivier. Gaston stated that she and Hewitt are still together. Gaston defended Turcott as a good father. While they were together, She said each contributed as a parent. Mothers and fathers don't always see eye to eye, but I think we were complimentary. Castal said even when the couple split, she had hopes they might still be friends. He said she wanted them to be a team to

work together on raising the kids. She last spoke to Turcott on May seventeenth, two thousand and nine, when she called a psychiatric hospital in Montreal and operator transferred to call. Gaston hadn't gone to work that day and was thinking of committing suicide herself. She had already written the letter. First, She wanted to ask Turcott why why the kids? GHI I love them more than I love myself, she told them,

He replied, according to her, me too. The judge had instructed jurors that acquittal was not an option, as Turcotta had admitted to stabbing his children and Sophie and Olivier in February two thousand and nine. The trial garnered unprecedented me the attention in Quebec, with members of the public line up for hours every day for a seat in the courtroom. Thirty nine witnesses testified, including Turcott, his parents, Gaston,

and numerous mental health experts. The jury had to decide on one of four scenarios, first degree murder, second degree murder, manslaughter, or not criminally responsible by reason of mental illness. It reached the decision July fifth, on what would have been the jury's sixth full day of deliberations, rendering a verdict of not criminally responsible due to mental disorder adjustment disorder

with anxiety and depressive moods. Isabella Gaston admitted to being astounded by the outcome, despite having prepared herself for all potential scenarios. With this verdict, my path will really not be easy, Gaston told reporters. The Saint Jerome, Quebec courtroom. I'm in shock. Even if it had been first degree murder, I could not have been satisfied because it would not have brought back my children in this life, she said. Gaston doesn't want an appeal and said she won't testify

again for me and I speak for myself alone. It's over. I will never return to a trial. There was public outrage expressed in the media in the province of Quebec over the verdict, but in the rest of Canada the story didn't seem to resonate. News of the verdict did spread like wildfire on the Internet, however, with hundreds of people turning to Twitter and other social media to discuss the outcome. Several major Province of Quebec television personalities even

weighed in to express their own personal disgust. Very very disappointing. Verdict criminally not responsible. I don't believe it, wrote Guy Lapage, host of a popular television talk show in Quebec, on his Twitter account. Another prominent Quebec TV personality, Julie Snyder, wrote that she was crying while thinking of the verdict.

I'm astonished, she added. Veteran lawyer and former Quebec Crown Prosecutor Robert Lehay said the public's emotional response is not surprising, but it's important to remember that juries are not supposed to be populist. He said. Juries render justice based on evidence. They weighed the evidence, dissected it and decided at the end of the day and concluded reasonably and without emotion, le Hay said. Crown Attorney Claudia Carboneau said she would

study the case before deciding whether to appeal. At this point, after a long trial, our thoughts are with an Sophie and Olivier and the family of an Sophie and Olivier, she said. Isabelle Gaston asked outside the courtroom to be left alone, that she could have for privacy again. Gaston in reporter she hopes a place after life exists where she can see her children again. I'd like a sign that they're all right, that they're happy, she said in tears.

Dieter God's future is now up to a psychiatric review committee that will assess his state of mind and his risk to public safety. He'll undergo a series of psychiatric evowtion valuations at the Penel Institute in Montreal before the committee decides whether he needs to remain in custody. Senator Pierre Hugh Boi Boisvenue, who doubles as a victim's right advocate, has stated that jurors should be barred from sitting on

complex murder cases in which a defendant pleads insanity. The senator also feels that the government should be concerned about a sharp rise in a number of not criminally responsible verdicts in Canadians courts. The senator made the comments after the latest verdict came down in the trial of former Quebec doctor Ghe Turcott, who admitted to fatally stabbing and mutilating his two children. Turcott said he suffered from anxiety,

depression and suicidal thoughts amid a crumbling marriage. The cardiologists could be freed later this summer if the Criminal Review Board decides he's not a danger to himself or society. Federal Justice Department statistics show a startling increase in not criminally responsible verdicts of almost fifty percent in the last twenty years, a spike largely attributable to Quebec courts. These are disturbing statistics, said bozo Venu, who plans to raise

the issue with Justice Minister Rob Nicholson. When some no one admits to having committed a crime, there is a responsibility that comes with it. Boys Venue said jurors in the Turcak case were barraged with conflicting testimony from psychiatrists who made their job extremely difficult. Some countries have chosen to have psychiatric evidence provided by three experts who are

independent of the crown or the defense, he said. Statistics show that nearly half of all not criminally responsible verdicts between nineteen ninety two and two thousand and four came from Quebec courts, even though the province has less than a quarter of the Canadian population. Ontario, Canada's most populous province, had thirty seven percent of such verdicts in the same time period. Of finding that irks boys Venue, he says Quebec courts are soft on defendants who plead mental distress.

The gap between Quebec and other Canadian provinces should concern in us, he said. It is a symptom of a society that trivializes the crime and thinks that punishment is wrong. While Senator boisvenue statements do not do raise some interesting points that may have some merit of concerns. The statistics cited seemed to imply the jurors or an underlying factor of the increase of not criminally responsible verdicts, but that is simply not the case. Most of the cases of

NCR and Canada are tried before judges only. A much more prevalent and disturbing trend is Crown prosecutors failing to aggressively dispute defense assertions of mental impairment. In many of the cases, the judge was presented with an agreed set of facts by both the Crown and defense, where the only witnesses were the psychiatrists who made assessments based on

meeting the accused. A few short times. The judges bound by judicial precedent to make a determination of guilt based only on the evidence presented, so the verdict is inevitably not criminally responsible. For months, we have read horrific details of the killings of the Turcott children by their father Ghee. Since Turcott admitted to stabbing his two children, Olivier five and n Sophy three, the trial was about why he

did it. On Tuesday, a jury found him not criminally responsible by virtue of his mental state at the time of the killings. The jury has given us a terrible verdict. Turcott should have been found guilty of murder. This was a case that highlighted issues related to depression, family violence, and social values. Defense argued that Turcott killed his children because he was depressed. I want to refute that assertion.

My perspective is not from a legal viewpoint, but as a social worker with thirty years of experiencing council severely depressed people, often following a set or divorce, and working in the fields of family, workplace, and personal relationship violence, I understand the deabilitating effects of depression, and I know that it is not unusual for severely depressed people to

think about killing themselves. They are focused on ending their own suffering, and they are not preoccupied with the impact of their suicide on their family members, nor, I should add, are they preoccupied about killing others. Unless bipolar illness is involved in this case, that was not alleged to have been a factor. Physical symptoms of the depression include a

loss of energy and extreme fatigue. Is therefore hard to understand how someone with severe depression could have found the energy to stab his son twenty seven times and his daughter nineteen. Is far more likely that Turcotte's energy was fueled by rage and the desire for revenge. His activities leading up to and after the murders were puzzling. He was soon with the need it to put his affairs in order and to ensure his ex wife did not have access to money. He even refused to pay for

his children's funerals. These actions do not point to someone who was in a deep depression alone. Rather, they point to an extreme disconnect with feelings of love for his children. They also point to a self absorbed individual who acted in spite. Turcott was portrayed by his defense lawyer as a loving, devoted father who could not bear to lose his family, and who was so overwhelmed by the infidelity of his ex wife that he lost it in a moment of desperation. We were led to believe he killed

his children and tried to kill himself. This argument is not valid. Turcott would have had ongoing access to his children more of an issue than the children no longer being in his life. I believe was his having lost control of his wife. How egocentric it was of him to think that the children would be better off dead than being shared with their mother. Killing the children indicated a desire to punish his ex wife for her ending their relationship. This is what conjugal violence is all about.

Family violence experts with whom I have talked about this case view the killing of young children by their fathers at a time of separation and divorce as an act of rage and revenge. Often the perpetrator, as with Turkot, does not exhibit previous violent behavior. This case also brings into questions society's values. It highlights a gradual erosion of personal responsibility for one's behavior and the ease with which arguments can be introduced into a murder trial to remove

that responsibility. As reported in the Gazette's July second story headlined, Judge tells jury they must agree on motive, The defense claimed it was an act of twisted compassion, an extended suicide to spare his children from a fatherless life. This perversion of land which attempts to reduce Turcotte's personal responsibility for his children's murder. Extended suicide is an oxymoron. To kill yourself is the suicide to kill others as murder to try to put the killing of other people under

the umbrella of suicide is shocking. The children in this case do not have a choice of living or dying. This choice of words is dangerous. It leads us down a path that would destroy society's core values and attacks a key part of our moral code. Thou shalt not kill. Twist the compassion was another phrase used to justify the killings. There was nothing compassionate about causing the deaths of these two young, healthy children, nor in the extremely violent way

was carried out. They would have suffered excruciating pain in their final moments. Turcott, in my view and the view of colleagues with whom I have spoken, become, became so enraged and bent on revenge that he gave himself permission to kill, and doing so, he jumped the barrier of permissible behavior. The jury has given us an unfortunate verdict that has weakened our social fabric. Frema Engel is a Montreal social worker who specializes in workplace conflict resolution, bullying

and violence prevention. She's a contributor to the Canadian Center for Abuse Awareness online magazine abuse Hurtz dot com. D Turcott the Quebec doctor found not criminal responsible for killing his two young children is allowed to take unescorted bike rides from a mental hospital. QMI Agency has learned the bike rides are not violations of the former cardiologists confinement conditions.

The review board ruled in June that while Turcott must remain in hospital, he has the right to lead the premise to allow for the transition between his current environment and law life in the outside world. As of this month, Turcott has been allowed to leave Penell for between eight and sixteen hours a day and can even sleep over at relatives' homes. In twenty twelve, Turcott said he was better than he was before the brutal stabbings in February

two thousand and nine. He feels felt less shame, less guilt, and had more self esteem and was ready to be released. Testifying before a mental health review board to determine whether to keep Turcott another year at the Penell Psychiatric Institute or release him to the care of his family, Turcott

said he was not a danger to anyone. A psychiatrist said that the double child killer Turcott is an ideal candidate to return to community as a panel decides whether the freedom from the hospital defense trial witnessed doctor Lewis Morissett told the review board there was no reason to justify the hospitation hospitalization of the former cardiologist who stabbed his young children forty six times in two thousand and nine.

He is no longer the same man, said Morisset. He has improved everything he could improve to make sure he doesn't reoffend. He has not had any symptoms of mental illness since the fall. The audience at the Panel hospital included Turcot's Ek's wife, who has become a victim's rights advocate since the verdict.

children in two thousand and nine. Gaston has spoken out against her ex husband's release from a psychiatric institution six months after being sentenced and just over three years after he admitted repeatedly stabbing their two young children in their beds, a mental health review board deemed that while he still posed a risk, he could be released from a psychiatric institution under strict rules. He is now a free man, and Sends said he intends to reapply for his medical license.

He also said he hopes to fall in love again and have more children. We have a person that is a cardiologist that never had a psychiatric incident, not at all, Gaston said. I have troubled to understand how someone in five or six hours can do an interview with someone and have a conclusion that he is not a dangerous to society or is mentally insane. I have to respect the jury's decision, but it confronts me and my values

because I think they didn't do their job. Gaston said she has spent a year researching similar cases that has seen large disparities in the results depending on the judge, the experience of the lawyers, and even how rich the defendant is, as it influences the quality of the defense. She added that she now lives in fear of what her ex husband could do next. What brought him to do that is still there? She said, Is it going to be me? Is it going to be another woman?

She said that she is still haunted by the deaths of her children, who are also covered in defensive wounds. Her son did not have one single fatal wounds, so she knows he died a long, painful death. To know that my children face the person that they should have trusted the most, and that they were left by themselves to die with no one holding their hand, Gaston said as she struggled to contain her tears. I struggle all the days, every day of my life, and I think

until I die, I will struggle. Turcott released. Outraged Quebec residents and even the Canadian government called Turcotte's release unacceptable. We believe that Isabelle Gaston does not deserve to live in fear of her children's killer, and neither do victims of similar crimes across Canada, said Federal Cabinet Minister James Moore.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper's government drafted legislation to make it more difficult for mentally ill offenders to be released from psychiatric facilities, yet it will not influence Turcott's case For now. Turcott has been released on conditions that he does not contact his ex wife or her family, that he continues his therapy, and that he lives at an address approved by the Penell Institute. He is not taking any medication

for mental illness presently. The release comes after Turcott underwent six months of regular therapy, which he said has left him less anxious. He said he is able to deal with his stress much better now. Pierre Rochet has been overseeing his mental health for the past six months and said he is really satisfied with the change in the man and believes he does not present a short term danger. The Crown prosecutor has filed in an appeal in the case,

which will be heard in the new year. On September thirtieth, two thousand and thirteen, arguments were heard in Quebec's Court of Appeal. The Crown was requesting the two thousand and eleven jury decision be annulled and a new trial ordered. The prosecutor argued that the judge in the first trial should have never even given the jury the option of

finding Turcott not criminally responsible. Crown said there was a lack of evidence to support a defense of not criminally responsible for reason of mental illness, arguing instead that the killings were premeditated intended as revenge against his former partner, Isabelle Gaston, who was having an affair. The Quebec Court of Appeal has now ruled that legal errors were committed in the original trial, including by the superior court judge

who presided over it. Turcott drank washer flewd later that evening in what he says was an attempt to kill himself. The Crown said, and not criminally responsible verdict should only be reserved for cases of mental illness, not ones where a suicide attempt might have triggered and after the fact blackout.

The appeals court verdict sided with such critics. Turkott's lif laere Pierre Poupart, argued unsuccessfully that he suffered from serious mental illness at the time and was intoxicated on windshield washer fluid as part of a suicide attempt. Poupart argued that the trial was thorough and meticulous and the jury ultimately arrived at the right verdict. Gaston was watching the case closely and closely and was in court to support

the overturning of Turcott's sentence. She said the case is weighing heavily on her and that its outcome will greatly impact her life. The stress is coming out for me. It's a big step for our justice system to repair for me. What is the biggest injustice in my life? She said. The defense's argument that Turcotte was suicidal and therefore unable to distinguish between right and wrong sets a

dangerous precedent. In November twenty fourteen, the Quebec Court of Appeal overturned the twenty eleven jury not criminally responsible verdict and ordered a second trial on two counts of first degree murder. Gaston became an outspoken advocate for justice reform after the deaths of her two children, and said a second trial could never fix the damage and the distress

she suffered during the first one. Turcott, who faces a second trial for killing his two children, told the judge he deserves bail because he's not a danger to society. I think it can be useful rather than wasting my time in prison. Kee Turcott told Judge Andre Vincent, looking pale and drawn and wearing foot shackles, the former heart specialist, asked to be released to his uncle's house, penning his

second double murder trial scheduled for next year. Turcott tried to persuade the judge at free him again would not undermine the public's confidence in administration of justice. During my lease, I often went out in public places and I never had problems, except for one time in the shopping center when a woman recognized me and became aggressive. A day earlier, the bail hearing heard from a psychiatris who said Turcott fell into a deep depression when the Quebec Court of

Appeal ordered a new trial last December. He was confined to a Montreal mental hospital for seven months to double the normal dose of antidepressants and had persecution delirium in episodes of paranoia. Doctor Renee Roy testified he was like a little five year old boy. She told the court he bit his nails. He was really in a pitiful state.

The second trial for a former Quebec cartiologist charged with first degree murder and the death of his two children began with the critical task of selecting a jury to hear the case. The case will be heard before Quebec's Superior Court Justice andre Vincent, with three months set aside for the jury to hear witnesses and final arguments. The Quebec Court of Appeal ruled in twenty thirteen that Turcott should stand trialing again, after concluding the trial judge had

aired in his directives to the jury. The Supreme Court of Canada refused to hear Turcott's attempt to have the new case dismissed. Turcott, forty three, was somber and impassive as he sat in a prisoner's box, close his eyes briefly when the judge said he was accused of having killed his two young children. Out on bail since December. Turcott moved slowly as he navigated the corridors at the courthouse, accompanied by his parents, as about twenty five journalists and

cameramen watched on. Crown Prosecutor Renee Veret said he expects to call thirty witnesses. Pierre Poupard told the trial he will argue that his client should not should be found not criminally responsible for the deaths. Whupar told the eleven ers he will call witnesses as well as experts doctors specializing in the examination of what goes on in the brain they will talk about in the acute suicidal crisis.

Whopar said Tyrcott's mental illness brought about that condition. The high profile defense lawyer told the jurors they will have to determine whether Turcotte was in a state of such psychological distress. He said he will try to prove that the accused would never have caused the children's death had he not been in that mental state. He also reminded the jurors that they will need to reach a verdict

based on the evidence and not on their emotions. Condemning a person who was not criminally responsible would shake the legal foundations and strike a blow to the integrity of the judicial system. Pupar said it would be horrible to be condemned for acts that are not the acts of a person of sound mind. He warned jurors there are still things to see that are painful and that nobody, even Turcott himself, can be insensitive to the facts of

the case. The defense lawyer all so asta jurors to not forget that the children who were victims of this tragedy were also his children. Turcott took the stand in his own defense, speaking in a low monotone voice. Turcott testified he often had brief suicidal thoughts after his frequent acrimonious arguments with his ex Isabel Gaston. He said the

stormy relationship made him feel discouraged and depressed. Turcott testified he thought about ways to end his life quickly, such as by hanging or ingesting windshield wipe or fluid or poison, but Turcott said he never went through with it because he said he couldn't do that to the children. Turcott testified while his relationship and arguments with Gastone got worse and more heated, his relations with their children got better all the time, adding that he felt good being with them.

He testified he never thought at leaving Gaston because he wanted the family to stay together. Gue Turcott said he was mocked and intimidated as a child, and that he had few friends. I was sort of the scapegoat. The defense that the Gue Turcott trial has called psychiatrist Dominique Bourget too. They stand convinced the jury that the cardiologist was not mentally competent when he killed his two young

children in two thousand and nine. Her specialty is homicide cases involving family members, and she's testified for the courts hundreds of times. She explained her resume and how she went about analyzing Turcott's claim of being mentally ill when he killed his children, Olivier and Anselphi. Borghett met Turcott on two occasions in twenty ten while he was distained

under psychiatric observation. She concluded the former cardiologists suffered from a mental illness called adjustment disorder with anxiety and depressed mood. It is a relatively common condition, triggered, as the name implies, by anxiety and depression. The illness usually lasts six months on average and disappears once sources of stress are no longer present. The disorder is considered an abnormal reaction to stress. Many of the people with this illness will try to

commit suicide. The psychiatrist added that Turcott did not suffer from a personality disorder in his youth, although he does display obsessive compulsive behavior. The double murder trial for Geet Turcott has moved away from the descriptions of the physical evidence to the murky mental evidence of a killer's state of mind. Doctor Jack Talbot testified on behalf of the defense on Monday at Turcott's trial for the double murder

of his children. Talbot was the first doctor to meet Turcott when he was admitted to the Penell Psychiatric Institute, and was his doctor of record for US one hundred and fifty two days. He first met Turkott on February twenty six, two thousand and nine, one week after the two children were killed. Talbot said Turcott was suicidal and suffering from an anxiety adjustment disorder. Talbot said that Turcott's first question was to ask if his children were still

alive and what had happened to them. Previous witnesses have explained it because he had drank methanol. Turcott may have been suffering from amnesia. Talbot testified when he told Turcott that Olivia and Sophie were dead, Turcott shut down emotionally. He diagnosed this as disassociation due to stress. The doctor said he placed Turkon in medication for depression, suicidal tendencies,

and sleep difficulties. On February twenty seventh, one week after the slayings, Talbot said Turcott had reached a sort of breaking point and I couldn't live anymore and wanted to commit suicide. He noted he couldn't do it while at the Penelun Institute, but didn't rule out eventually killing himself. Talbot described Turcott as trying to insulate himself from his emotions. People do this, he explained, as a defense mechanism when

one's emotions are simply too much to bear. Turcott began to immerse himself in complicated linature and penned a list of specific items to recover from the home where the slayings took place, including a sack of potatoes, a compact disc, and a pepper mill. Talbot confirmed what Turcott had said that much of his memories of February twenty February twentieth were scattered and he only remembered flashes. In March two thousand and nine, Turcott was still angry at his now

ex wife, Isabella Gaston, over her infidelity. In April, the suicidal thoughts were still present. One month later, he said his life is over and that death would be better. Turcott told the psychiatrist he deserved to suffer and was surprised at the support from his own family and the friendliness of staff at the institute. While listening to the testimony, Turcott stared at the ground, not looking at the jury, the witness or his lawyer. Burgette explained this in more

detail to the jury. The night he killed his two children, Gee Turcott was no longer able to deal with the emotional burden of his rapidly changing personal life was on the verge of committing suicide. It was like one shock after another, he told the jury. Turcott's mental state was like that of an overflowing glass of water, and he couldn't handle the rest of his marriage and the infidelity of his wife. He was in an acute suicidal crisis.

Calling it invasive state, the person becomes overwhelmed, obsessed with suicidal thoughts, and then they lose touch with reality. Borget defined the condition as a disease, not just in an emotional reaction to stress. On February twentieth, he had decided to end his life and began drinking windshield wash or fluid, which contains methanol. As he went about his plan, he decided to bring his children with him. It's clear, even on its own, methanol poisoning is likely to affect one's

judgment and alter their consciousness. She said. A telephone conversation gue Turcott had with his mother the night before he killed his two children was sort of a suicide note, the defense expert witness testified. Lewis Morrisset, the psychiatrist appointed by the defense to evaluate Turkott, said the hour long telephone conversation was a sort of spoken farewell letter where he told his mother he loved her and asked her

to convey that message to his father and siblings. Morset said he believes Turcott had sunk into a deep despair on February twentieth and was in the midst of a suicile crisis that led him to consume windshield washer fluid before electing to kill his children out of a clouded logic that he didn't want him didn't want them to

find him dead the next day. Under cross examination, he was asked to defend that conclusion, giving previous testimony from two witnesses, including Turcott's ex wife Isabelle, suggesting he mentioned he was seeking revenge both before and after the slayings. It says what it says, There is no explanation, Morrisset said, adding while revenge is possible, the clinical evidence doesn't back

it up. Morset spoke of the final conversation and said Turcott was already intoxicated and had likely been consuming windshield washer fluid before talking to his mother, and suggested to Turcott's suicidal thoughts came suddenly when Gee Turcott stabbed his two young children to death, he was engaging in an act of homicidal altruism. Lewis Morsett was cross examined by the Crown for a second consecutive day and told the jury Turcott killed his kids because he didn't want them

to suffer. He said the ex doctor acted out of homicidal altruism because he wanted to prevent them from witnessing his eventual suicide, but he added that logic was faulty and the result of a sick mind. Morisset and the previous defense witness Dominique Burgette concur Turcott was suffering from a suicidal crisis after the end of his marriage, would led him to drink Winshield washer fluid the night he

killed his two kids. On February twenty second February twentieth, two thousand and nine, Crown Prosecutor Rene Verey accused Moriset of trying to minimize the effect drinking windshield fluid, which contains the toxic substance methanol, had on Turcott. You are excluding the methanol as a contributing factor, Veray asked, yes,

it was very marginal. Morisset said Veray was incredulous about the claim Turcott really wanted to kill himself because he chose to drink methanol, which, after ingestion, brings about a slow death. The Crown prosecutor also asked Morisset to explain why Turcott called his mother the Knight of the murders, asking her to come save him, which he she could have done before the methanol took effect. Morisset said Turcott

truly wanted to kill himself that night, but failed. Borget told the jury she believes the acts were a product of a man whose brain was profoundly sick. His brain was not working like a normal persons, Bourguet said, adding that Turcotte was disconnected from reality. He was in a state of mental confusion, was out of touch with reality. She said, he was thinking so much about dying he

was no longer thinking of anything else. She testified that Turcott was not thinking of killing his children the night they died. For him, at that moment, it was not to kill, it was to bring his children with him. She said that this logic was clearly faulty and irrational. We understand that this way of thinking is highly abnormal and can be explained in mister Turcott's case by the

presence of psychiatric illness. She said. A parent who is contemplating suicide doesn't think about killing, but rather about an expanded suicide. Because a good parent doesn't want to abandon their children to leave them behind. His actions are ill while the more absurd, she said, because he's causing them to suffer by killing them to spare them the suffering of finding their father dead. Burgay testified at Turcott's first trial in twenty eleven and saw him again in July

twenty fifteen to make a second report. In his cross examination, Crown Prosecutor Rene Very questioned whether Burget had been too willing to believe everything Turcott told her during her analysis. He asked Burgee to explain why, on the day of the killings, Turcott was able to go to work, call his mother, and cancel two appointments if his brain was not working properly. Burgay responded that Turcott's brain wasn't working well,

but it could still make certain connections. The crown wrapped up its case after calling twenty nine witnesses after a twelve week trial. On December sixth, twenty fifteen, ye Turcott was found guilty of second degree murder in the stabbing deaths of his two young children. In two thousand and nine. The levenjerors returned with a verdict on their seventh day of deliberations. A muffled yes could be heard in the courtroom when the verdict was announced. It came from the

direction of Isabella Gaston. Gaston spoke to reporters after the verdicant said she was relieved by the jury's decision. Today I hope the souls of Olivier and an Sophie can be at peace. She said. For me, this is the day I can begin to rest. Since there's death, I've had the impression my life has been a struggle. Now it's all about healing. But Gaston said her life will never be the same even with the verdict. Tomorrow, I will not wake up with my children. Turcott's sentencing arguments

took place on December eighteenth. At the sentencing hearing, Gustau told Turcott to look her in the eye as she defiantly declared that while he has broken her heart, he has not broken her resolve. I want you to know, Gye Turcotte, that you have achieved your goal, she said, as Turcott, his head down, sat shaking in the prisoner's box. I want to look I want you to look me in the eye. You have broken my heart forever, but I want you to know that you have not broken

my resolve. Many in the courtroom cried the handcuff Turcott cried and tried to wipe away the tears as he listened to her. The judge, hearing the arguments, invited Turcott to speak the doctor. The ex doctor jumped at the opportunity. People cannot understand the shame I have, he said in a weak sounding voice. I cannot look people in the face. I'm so ashamed. I want to tell you, Isabelle, I didn't testify to make you feel recent responsible, he said.

Added he want to explain what he'd done and gone through after hitting the bottom of the barrel. It was not to hurt you. I know I can never forgive myself of what happened. The crown prosecutor suggested Turcotte serve a minimum of twenty years before he would be eligible to apply for parole, while the defense countered it should be less than fifteen and closer to ten. Gaston, the only witness the Crown chose to have testify, Friday, told the judge she always wanted to be a mother and

that losing her children ended that dream. The woman who existed in two thousand and nine no longer exists and never will again. She explained that she has tried to have other children since the slayings, underwent procedures to help that happen, but at forty three I have lost hope. The jurors had a choice of four possible verdicts, not criminally responsible or guilty of first degree murder, second degree murder,

or manslaughter. Vincent asked them last week if they had any recommendations for the minimum number of years Turcott should served, but they said they had none. Since the murders occurred in two thousand and nine, Turcott will have only one murder conviction sentence, with the second conviction to be served concurrently. The only decision will be how long until parole eligibility between ten and twenty five years. Quebec Superior Court Justice andre Vincent will be made will make his ruling on

January fifth, two thousand and sixteen. Isabella Gaston read a statement at the sentencing hearing for her ex husband Gee Turcott. This is a translation of the letter she submitted to the court, Your honor, I hesitated about speaking with you before. I was worried I wouldn't be heard. Victims it seems, must always wait their turn. What we have to say

too much to be heard all the way through. After much thought, though, I chose to exercise my right to speak because you aren't among those that have prevented me from saying what I needed to get off my chest. I've endured difficult proceedings and for years, and my place

was at the back of the room. I endured is with courage and relief that I am speaking to you to day, Aside from my concerns about not being heard, standing before you and saying out loud, everything I've endured, lost and felt seemed to be at odds with my desire to forget and my constant effort to rebuild what is left of my life. I'm here for myself to help me move forward and to make peace with what I can change and give me the strength to face

the future. I am still standing. I am resilient. But I hope that when it comes time for you to render your sentence, this letter in my voice will echo and remind you what I have suffered because of Gietterkatt. I want you to remember that he did nothing to help my life, make make my life easier. After the deaths of our children, we easily recognize the consequences of convicting the innocent, but we too often overlooked the consequences

of justice denied. By killing Olivia and Ane Sophie, Guy Turcotte broke my heart and destroyed a big part of who I was. He annihilated the precious life choice I had made being a mother. I was in two thousand and nine. The woman I was in two thousand and nine no longer exist and never will again, socially, psychologically, financially, professionally. Olivia was the most wonderful little boy in an Sophie

was the most extraordinary little girl. When we are young, we dream about what we want to be when we grew up. We see a future for ourselves. Some dream of winning the lottery, others of becoming astronauts. I dreamed of having children. The morning of February twentieth, I had two beautiful children. In less than twenty four hours later,

I had none. I was still in shock a few days after their deaths when there was a knock on my door and I was given a list of items to be retrieved from the house to pay for his lawyers. I suffered a great deal of anxiety as they threatened to sell off the children's toys. They had no real financial value, but symbolically for me, those toys were worth all the treasures in the world. I was still being hurt. I had to hire a lawyer so my children's belongings

weren't lost forever. The death of my children means I will be working through the complexities of my grief and post traumatic stress for the rest of my life. I am learning to tame my heartbreak. Many days and much of my downtime have been devoted to this process, and will continue to be devoted to this process for the rest of my life. Since February twentieth, I have learned

to smile even when I am in pain. Even when I am suffering, I have had to learn with live with constant fear because some people have called me a slut, a whore, a moron, among other things. I have received hate mail. I've had to go to police after receiving threatening letters at work. I have felt enormous guilt because some people said I was responsible for the deaths of my children. For a long time, I didn't think I deserved to be alive or to be loved. Petercott never

took responsibility for his actions. He painted himself as a victim, inferring that I was responsible for what he did. With every passing day, I worried that I will forget the happy memories I have of my children. I'm afraid of forgetting the faces, their faces and voices I missed them. I am the parents whose children are still by their sides. It has made my friendships and my family life painful. I have had the same friends for you years, and they all have children the same age as mine, even

though I have projects. When you don't have children, and when the legal process has been under way for seven years, there is little to talk about until the trial and legal proceedings are over. They will always be the main topic of conversation. My friend's children have asked me questions. I've had to learn to lie because there's no good

way to explain the unexplainable. I always refused life insurance because the insurance company deemed my risk of suicide too great, even though I have never attempted it and I have never had any mental illnesses. I was told many parents more in the death of their children, and they never get over it. I can't increase my disability insurance, and since we have already maximized mister Turcotte's and minimize my own, I will never be well covered in case of illness,

not at least in the medium term. My joint bank account was emptied, which caused me much stress because I was worried that I had been a victim of identity theft. I missed days of work and occurred lawyer's fees to recover the money that was taken. Someone also assumed my identity to obtain information about me from my insurance company. I gave up my job as a corner because the many legal proceedings may be unavailable to take on new cases. It took me years to get that job which I

had taken all the necessary steps to obtain. I had to give it up after two years with sadness, because it was a job I had coveted since I started in medicine. I stopped working as an in emergency room. It was work that I loved and I had done full time for almost twelve years. I realized I, given the lack of sleep in the haphazard schedule, that was increasingly capable of dealing with the horrible flashes of what my children suffered. I was afraid of freezing up. That's

an example of post traumatic stress. It's a psychological reaction that occurs when we suffer a blow to our mental health and physical well being, and it can inflict much pain. Maybe you didn't see it in all of the photos, but I saw my children with all of their wounds and injuries. Just days after their death, I cradled them. My children died alone in their beds. It's unimaginable. The attack came from the inside from someone I trusted, but

most importantly, from someone Olivier and Anselfhie trusted. Beyond their physical pain, I cannot imagine what they must have been thinking and have not seen all of these horrible images just once, but many times, and as a result of the many legal proceedings, I have stopped counting my sleepless nights. It took seven years, two trials, an appeal, of an appeal, in several administrative procedures, but finally, on December sixth, twenty fifteen,

justice was served. I sacrificed my private life, not by choice but by obligation. I could not continue to look at myself in the mireor knowing that what had happened was a grave air. Despite my distress and my struggle, I could not endure the suffering of the proceedings without speaking out whenever I could. Even today, in spite of the verdict, I remained bitter. I don't understand why we

didn't proceed more quickly, Judge. At the beginning of my battle, I was told to forget about it, that that I would not be able to change things. But I found failings in the system. For years, we have not placed any controls on the quality of medical evidence presented at criminal trials. I want you to know that I sacrificed my health and my life projects for this battle, which I believe is a fundamental one. In September twenty sixteen, I will have put in five years of intense work

for it. I still feel a certain frustration toward a government and system that does not wholly recognize someone like me whose children were killed as a victim of crime. I do not understand why we don't change the IVAC law in this regard. There are so few of us. I'm still hoping that one day a minister or other official will come and call me to say, yes, we are changing the law for parents whose children are killed. I believe this would protect the children because at least

the aggressor won't have the pleasure of knowing. They will also kick to the curb families who aren't as fortunate as I am. In closing, I would like you, Geetter to Caut to know that you have achieved your goal. You have broken my heart for good. However, despite all that I have suffered because of you, I want you to know that you have not killed my resolve. You have not killed my capacity to marvel nor my ability to love. Even broken, my heart's still beat strongly for

Olivier and an Sophie. I'm a better person because of them. With this verdict, I can now rest. I am happy. I'm waiting for snow so I can make a snowman. And when spring comes, I'll watch the tulips bloom. I'm enjoying my new life and my freedom. Isabelle Gaston even listening to Death Bedside Matter with your host Dan Zupansky. Have a good evening and happy New Year. Good Night,