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Sad story
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http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/story.html?id=3306abc6-1612-4a20-8518-6de62a028fa2&k=17079

My heart goes to this poor girls family and friends.


Man charged with murder in Quebec cop's death
Suspect accused of killing officer was under firearms ban

Published: Thursday, December 15, 2005

Constable Valerie Gignac, 25, died at Sacre Coeur Hospital in Montreal hours after she was shot while responding to what was reported to be a domestic dispute.

The president of Quebec's police brotherhood says the suspect accused of her murder shouldn't have been allowed to possess a firearm for hunting.

Gilles Lemieux says the justice system didn't do its job when it prohibited Francois Pepin from having a firearm except during hunting season.

Laval police chief Jean-Pierre Gariepy says the high-powered rifle that was used was strong enough to kill an elephant.

Gignac, a four-year veteran of the force, grew up in the Quebec City region.

She is the first Laval police officer killed on duty.

Gariepy made the sombre announcement of Gignac's death while the Surete du Quebec continued efforts to get the shooter out of a three-storey building in the city's Laval des Rapides district yesterday evening.

The man eventually surrendered at 6:45 p.m. He was not injured, police said.

"It's the first time we have had to live with something like this in Laval," Gariepy said as he offered his condolences to Gignac's family.

"So you can understand that the pain is doubly profound in this young police force.

"She was very young - too young."

Gignac and her partner were called to an apartment building on 7th Ave. sometime after 11 a.m. yesterday. She was shot inside the building.

Gignac was wearing a bulletproof vest at the time, Gariepy said.

Despite this, she suffered a wound to her stomach. Some officers speculated the shooter used a large-calibre weapon.

Neighbour Danielle Lajoie, 51, heard the gunshot and later saw Gignac's partner dragging her down the hall and was asked to call 911.

"The noise that I heard sounded like a door being slammed shut, not the sound of gunshot," said Lajoie, who works nights.

"Then I heard some noises in the stairway and I saw a police officer on the floor with another officer who had brought the (injured) officer down the stairs.

"She was shot upstairs and the other officer brought her down to my floor. I opened the door. The police officer asked me to call 911. I called and I passed the phone to the officer, who was doing first aid on his partner.

"The bullet apparently entered under her vest," she said, adding it hit Gignac in the stomach.

Lajoie said she believed the shot went through the apartment's door.

Eric Berry, a spokesperson for the Urgences Sante ambulance network, said Gignac was quickly taken to the hospital but she was already in critical condition before she arrived there.

Laval police surrounded the apartment block quickly. They evacuated it and other buildings in the area while a man - described by some neighbours as a constant nuisance - holed himself up in an apartment.

Shortly after the building was surrounded, Laval police asked the Surete to take over the effort to persuade the man to give up.

The provincial police force is better equipped to handle such situations in terms of personnel and equipment. A small armoured SQ vehicle was used to move personnel around the building while negotiators urged the man to turn himself in.

Officers wearing military-style camouflage and helmets entered and exited the apartment building throughout the afternoon.

People attending a funeral at Eglise St. Claude, a block north of the scene of the shooting, were told to remain inside the church until the police were able to ensure it was safe to leave. The mourners were told they could leave a short time later.

The shooting also prompted four schools located within or near the police security perimeter to keep students and teachers inside during lunch hour. The one secondary and three elementary schools serve a total of about 3,000 students.

As well, elementary students who live within the security perimeter were kept after school until their parents were able to pick them up.

"We had to keep them inside for their safety," said Jean-Pierre Archambault, secretary-general of the Commission scolaire de Laval.

"Everything's gone very well."

Surete Sgt. Francois Dore said police were able to make contact with the gunman only about five hours after the shooting.

Journalist Claude Poirier, a commentator on the TVA network, said he was at the Montreal courthouse yesterday morning when Laval police informed him the alleged shooter had asked for his help. But Poirier, who has often been called in to help in such situations, said that when he arrived, police were unable to contact the man by phone.

Gariepy, a long-time police veteran who rose through the ranks of the SQ before taking over as director of the Laval police force, said he has had to deal with similar situations before.

"I can say that each time you have to search very far to be able to keep a cool head and continue to manage a team like mine."

Laval police travelled to Quebec City to break the news to Gignac's parents. Police officers brought the parents to Sacre Coeur Hospital late in the afternoon.

Gignac's boyfriend, a police officer with Laval's K-9 unit, was also there. He was on the same work team as Gignac, Laval police Constable Guy Lajeunesse said. He was responding to another call when the shooting occurred, Lajeunesse said.

The couple had been living together for a year.

The entrance to Sacre Coeur's ER department was a hub of police activity yesterday.

Montreal police showed up to offer support. A few of their officers milled around the ER entrance. At one point, officers were stationed outside in two vehicles.

Shortly after 4 p.m., five young officers - men and women - got out of a Laval police cruiser and headed into the ER, declining to speak to a reporter.

When they walked out 25 minutes later, one of the male officers wiped his eyes with his fingers. As they left, two more Laval officers arrived at the hospital.

A psychologist met with all the police officers who were on Gignac's work team yesterday, Lajeunesse said. Those officers have the day off today, he said.

A funeral will be held for Gignac next Tuesday in Laval.

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"The aspect of sport that you learn is that you have your good times and your bad times, but you share it with great people." - George Gregan

Last edited by: Ted McGregor: Dec 15, 05 15:42
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