St-Lazare

By Chelsey St-Pierre
The Suburban

A 21-year-old St-Lazare man is facing sentencing after pleading guilty to impaired driving causing death in a tragic accident that deeply affected the Pointe-Claire community.

On December 18, 2021, a vehicle ran off the Sources overpass while the driver was driving at high speed. This resulted in the body of a teen being ejected from the vehicle onto the ground on Donegani Avenue. The incident shocked the local community.

The tragic crash claimed the life of 16-year-old Noah-Lewis Mercier, who succumbed to his injuries three days after the tragic event while hospitalized.

In a shocking and heartfelt appeal to the court, Marie-Christine Parent, Mercier’s mother, urged leniency for the driver, Julien Ségaux, who was not only the person behind the wheel but also her son’s best friend. Despite her immense grief, Parent called for compassion and understanding within the courtroom. “We need more compassion, we need more thinking of others,” she stated, reflecting her son’s caring nature on the night of his death. Her plea underscored a desire not just for justice, but for healing and community learning from this devastating event, which added to the heavy emotional weight of her plea, as Parent had also lost another son in similar circumstances.

Parent made it clear that she did not solely blame Ségaux for the tragedy, highlighting the unfortunate decisions made by both young men on the evening of the crash that caused her son’s death. Her call for leniency was a testament to her belief in rehabilitation and the power of forgiveness, hoping that this tragedy could serve as a lesson for others. 

Prosecutor Sylvie Dulude has argued for a prison sentence, emphasizing the need for such a measure to act as a deterrent to impaired driving on a larger scale while defense lawyer Robert Israel advocated for a community-based sentence, highlighting Ségaux’s lifelong guilt and the significant challenges he faces in rebuilding his life following the accident. Israel stressed the impact of the tragedy on Ségaux, who has been unable to resume normalcy due to physical and emotional injuries.

Mercier was the step-son of CAQ MNA Marilyne Picard. The decision in the case will be rendered by Judge Jean-Jacques Gagné.