Montreal’s Philippe-Pinel institute was mandated to evaluate Pierre Ny St-Amand’s mental state at the time of his alleged crimes on Feb. 8. Both the Crown and the defence told a Laval, Que., courtroom on Wednesday that they had only received the 22-page report earlier that morning, and they asked that the case be postponed until June 13 to allow them to evaluate its contents.
Lespérance Hudon said following the hearing that he needed to consult with his client and the Crown to determine the next steps in the case. He said that a medical concept of criminal responsibility is not exactly the same as a legal one.
“It’s not necessarily because he’s found not criminally responsible by a medical expert that legally he (would be) not responsible,” he told reporters outside the courtroom. Only the judge, the Crown and the defence in the case are allowed to read the report, he added.
The 51-year-old driver with the Laval transit corporation was arrested after a bus crashed into the front of a daycare in the city’s Ste-Rose neighbourhood, killing two four-year-olds and injuring six other children.
He faces two counts of first-degree murder as well as seven other charges, including attempted murder and aggravated assault.
Maëva David and Jacob Gauthier, both four years old, were killed in the crash, which injured six other children.
It was initially unclear whether St-Amand would remain at the hospital or be returned to a conventional detention centre while awaiting his next court appearance.