Lawyer for man who killed Quebec police officer says no sign of threat in final chat

MONTREAL — The lawyer for a Quebec man who killed a provincial police officer says his client showed no indication he was about to become violent.

A coroner’s inquest heard today that lawyer Yanick Péloquin was likely the last person to speak with Isaac Brouillard Lessard before the man stabbed Sgt. Maureen Breau to death on March 27 in Louiseville, Que., about 100 kilometres northeast of Montreal. 

Brouillard Lessard was shot dead by police in his apartment building moments after he attacked Breau and seriously injured another officer.

Péloquin says he had a 45-minute text exchange with Brouillard Lessard that ended about two hours before police arrived to his client’s house to arrest him for uttering threats and violating probation.

The lawyer says nothing in that conversation led him to believe Brouillard Lessard was about to commit a crime, adding that he would have called police had he suspected his client was on the verge of being aggressive. 

Péloquin says that in a separate phone conversation not long before the killing, his client expressed concerns about police officers coming to his home and forcing him into a hospital for care.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 19, 2024.

The Canadian Press