Alexandre Bissonnette arrives at the court house in Quebec City on February 21, 2017. Mr. Bissonnette was sentenced Feb. 8 to life in prison with no chance of parole for 40 years.MATHIEU BELANGER/The Canadian Press
After initially voicing shock and disappointment, Quebec City’s Muslim community now says it accepts the sentence meted out to murderer Alexandre Bissonnette for the 2017 mosque shooting that killed six men.
Mr. Bissonnette was sentenced Feb. 8 to life in prison with no chance of parole for 40 years. In an emotional news conference after the sentence was read, leaders of the Grand Mosque of Quebec City expressed bitterness over the punishment and urged prosecutors to appeal.
But in a statement on Sunday, the Islamic Cultural Centre of Quebec City said families of the victims are eager to turn the page.
“Today, a few days after the sentence, the dust is starting to settle,” the centre said in a statement.
“Today, we cannot speak about satisfaction or dissatisfaction but of resilience, since neither satisfaction nor dissatisfaction can give life back to six fathers or give health back to the wounded, and even less the peace of mind to survivors or the sense of security of the past at the Grand Mosque of Quebec City.”
The centre said “we respect the justice system of our country,” and “we wish to simply resume normal life and protect our children.”
On the day, the sentence was delivered by Quebec Superior Court Justice François Huot, community members and survivors of the shooting expressed surprise over the sentence. They said children left fatherless by the attack would have to relive the tragedy at Mr. Bissonnette’s parole hearing in 40 years; 17 children lost their fathers in the shooting.
The Crown had sought 150 years in jail for Mr. Bissonnette without parole. Justice Huot rejected the proposal and said a prison term of 50 years or more was cruel and unusual punishment under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
Both the Crown and defence said after the judge’s sentence that they would review his decision; they had 30 days to appeal. Some legal observers speculated the case could wind up at the Supreme Court.
For their part, Mr. Bissonnette’s parents, Manon Marchand and Raymond Bissonnette, issued a letter to the media saying they considered the judge’s sentence “very severe.” They said the bullying that their son sustained in school left “devastating effects on his personality.”
Mr. Bissonnette, 29, pleaded guilty last March to six counts of first-degree murder and six charges of attempted murder for the mass shooting on Jan. 29, 2017, that killed six Muslim worshippers.
In its statement, the cultural centre also urged provincial and federal leaders to tighten firearms controls and to lessen social tensions. “We ask them to take all appropriate means to remain inclusive governments so that each citizen can live in dignity and respectful of their neighbour.”