Montreal man sentenced to one year in jail for forcing miscarriage
Last Updated: Wednesday, May 19, 2004 | 8:55 AM ET
CBC News
Gary Bourgeois, 46, pleaded guilty to charges of aggravated assault and administering a toxic substance.
"Society cannot tolerate a male partner in a relationship unilaterally putting an end to a pregnancy," said Quebec court Judge Jean-Pierre Bonin.
In September 2000, Bourgeois slipped a toxic drug normally used to treat stomach ulcers into his pregnant girlfriend's vagina after they had sex.
When she began having stomach cramps and bleeding, he drove her to hospital where he left her at the emergency room. She miscarried shortly after.
The woman waited until she was about 14 weeks pregnant before telling Bourgeois, and he encouraged her to have an abortion. She refused.
She called police following the miscarriage when she found part of a pill in her underwear.
Bourgeois told the Quebec court he never meant to harm the woman. His lawyer Lloyd Fischler asked for an 18-month sentence of house arrest.
"In the back of his mind, he always knew ... that he may go to jail," said Fischler.
Crown prosecutor Anne Gauvin argued that jail time fit the crime, which she said was premeditated. She also said a message of deterrence was needed.
"Many men face an unwanted or unplanned pregnancy, and the message must be clear that they can't take into their hands the destiny of their girlfriends or their babies," she said.
