Jurors at PQ shooting trial hear of accused’s political ‘vision’ for Montreal

MONTREAL – Jurors at the first-degree murder trial of Richard Henry Bain heard of his political “vision from God” on Thursday as the Crown ended its case against the man charged in Quebec’s 2012 election shooting.

Montreal must break away from the “separatists” in the rest of Quebec and become the newest province of Canada, Bain says in a 2012 audio recording that was played for the court.

Several days after the shooting that left lighting technician Denis Blanchette dead, Bain called Montreal radio station CJAD from a detention centre in the north part of the city.

“It’s a vision that I have from my God; the God of Abraham,” Bain tells reporter Trudie Mason during the off-air interview.

Crown prosecutor Dennis Galiatsatos played the 38-minute recording for the 14 jurors after calling Mason to the witness stand.

Bain, 65, is on trial for allegedly murdering Blanchette outside the venue where premier-designate Pauline Marois was giving her victory speech on Sept. 4, 2012.

He also faces three charges of attempted murder and two fire-related counts.

During the interview, Bain proceeds to outline his ideas for Montreal to separate from Quebec in order for everyone to “live in peace and harmony on the island of Montreal.”

His so-called vision isn’t novel; the idea of Montreal separating from Quebec often resurfaces when there is talk of Quebec independence.

Bain says during the interview the island of Montreal — which is mostly federalist according to polls — should “separate from the separatists.”

Mason asks if he will plead insanity during his upcoming trial.

“I can’t discuss that,” Bain responds.

She also asks if he went to the nightclub that night to shoot Marois.

“I can’t answer that,” is his reply.

Bain’s lawyer, Alan Guttman, asked Mason during his cross-examination what she thought of a man, charged with murder, calling from jail and talking about a vision from God.

“I felt this was an individual with an agenda,” she said.

The last piece of evidence presented by the Crown was a videotaped interview of Bain’s brother, Robert, who spoke to provincial police in October 2012.

Robert is seen crying as he tells the officer, “I’m just surprised at what he did. I never expected it.”

Robert Bain tells the officer that the day of the shooting, he saw his sibling at a Montreal hospital.

Before leaving, he “asked me where the Metropolis was,” Robert says, referring to the name of the nightclub that was the PQ’s election headquarters.

“I told him I didn’t know — to this day I still don’t know,” Robert tells the officer.

The Crown contends that as Marois began her victory speech at the Metropolis, Bain approached the back of the venue with a tactical assault rifle and fired a bullet that struck Blanchette and also hit another stagehand, who survived.

Galiatsatos claims Bain would have shot more people had his rifle not jammed.

Bain then allegedly poured gasoline around the back door of the venue, lit road flares and threw them at the door, igniting a fire as hundreds of people were inside listening to Marois.

The accused then allegedly pointed a second handgun at an officer but was tackled by police and arrested before he could get a shot off.

The trial is scheduled to resume July 18, when Guttman begins presenting his evidence.