Bus driver in Laval, Que., daycare crash found not criminally responsible

Pierre Ny St-Amand, the 53-year-old man who crashed a bus into a daycare in Laval, Que., killing two children and injuring six others, has been found not criminally responsible for his actions.

Both the Crown and the defence recommended Ny St-Amand be found not criminally responsible during a trial held before a judge.

"In light of the evidence that was presented jointly, that was neither contradicted nor contested, it is undeniable that the bus driven by Pierre Ny St-Amand crashed into the daycare," Quebec Superior Court Justice Éric Downs said in his decision.

"The court is convinced beyond a reasonable doubt that the accused was dealing with mental health issues, namely psychosis, at the time of the event."

Ny St-Amand rammed the bus into the Laval daycare on Feb. 8, 2023, killing a four-year-old boy and a five-year-old girl. After the crash, Ny St-Amand stood inside the mangled bus and undressed, speaking and yelling incoherently before being subdued by parents on the scene.

He was charged with two counts of second-degree murder, as well as charges of assault with a weapon and assault causing bodily harm in relation to six other children who were injured.

Downs said that this decision doesn't acquit or absolve Ny St-Amand. But he acknowledged that his ruling won't help understand why the tragedy happened. 

The parents of children who were involved or impacted by the incident were in the room, and some burst into tears after hearing the ruling.

"I'm lucky to still have my two children with me. One with a lot of trauma," said Catherine Beaudoin. "But, I think there will never be words to describe what we feel and that will never pass."

Parents had previously expressed frustration that there would not be a jury trial and that they weren't heard during this process. 

But Downs said that a jury trial would have come to the same conclusion. 

Downs based his decision on the testimony presented by two psychiatrists who independently concluded that Ny St-Amand was suffering from a mental disorder when the incident happened and was incapable of discerning right from wrong at the time of the crash. 

One psychiatrist testified that Ny St-Amand had untreated post-traumatic stress disorder from his childhood as an orphan in war-torn Cambodia and might have targeted the daycare as a way of "killing his own past."

'It feels like he's the victim,' parent says

Some parents felt Ny St-Amand was being painted as a victim during the trial and said everyone has a past to deal with.

"It's shocking to us to see how they talk about him," said parent Melanie Goulet. "It feels like he's the victim."

Goulet expressed being let down by the process.

"I feel there is no justice at this point. I feel like criminals have more rights, have more care than all the victims," she said.

WATCH | Emotional parents say justice has not been served: 

Parents emotional as bus driver in Laval, Que., daycare crash found not criminally responsible

2 days ago

Duration 1:31

Some parents of children who were present when a bus crashed into a daycare in 2023 say there has been ‘no justice’ after a Quebec Superior Court judge declared the driver of the bus not criminally responsible for his actions.

Goulet pointed to how the defence had made its case based on the fact that Ny St-Amand had suffered childhood trauma between his birth and the age of five and said she worried about the future.

"That's the case for our kids. They had big trauma at four and five years old," she said. "What's going to happen next? Who's going to take care of them?"

Parents will have a chance to be heard on Thursday when they deliver victim impact statements in court.

"I'm going to tell my story," Goulet said. "It's a tragic story, but nobody knows about it ... the story we know now is the story of that man."

Crown Prosecutor Simon Blais acknowledged Tuesday's decision was a difficult one for the families affected by the tragedy.

"We are with all our hearts with them," he said, adding the Crown is doing all it can to ensure the safety of the public and of victims.

Blais said the Crown had filed a motion to have Ny St-Amand declared a "high-risk accused," a designation that would require he face stricter rules around absences from any treatment facility. 

It would also require any decision taken by the provincial mental health tribunal to be approved by a Quebec Superior Court judge.

Blais also reiterated that the judge's decision was not an acquittal, noting Ny St-Amand will be detained at the Philippe-Pinel Institute, a psychiatric hospital located in Montreal. 

Lawyers for Ny St-Amand said they intend to challenge the motion to have their client labelled high risk. 

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What does it mean when someone is found not criminally responsible in a trial?

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The defence team in the trial of Jeremy Skibicki are arguing in a Winnipeg courtroom this week that he should be found not criminally responsible. But what does that mean and what are the consequences for the accused? CBC reporter Caitlyn Gowriluk explains.