‘No hope of rehabilitation’ for Quebecer who killed 10-year-old in 1994, judge says

MONTREAL – There is “no hope for rehabilitation” for a Quebec man who was convicted of second-degree murder in the killing of a 10-year-old girl north of Montreal in 1994, a judge said Monday as she sentenced the killer to the maximum sentence allowable under the law.

Superior Court Justice Hélène Di Salvo told a court in St-Jerôme, Que., that Réal Courtemanche has not shown any remorse for his crime, as she ordered him to serve life in prison with no chance of parole for 25 years.

“The court is of the opinion that there is no hope for rehabilitation,” the judge said. “The accused adheres to a criminalized lifestyle, and has for decades. We can only conclude that the detention of the accused is the only solution to ensure society’s protection.” 

Courtemanche, who is in his 60s, was already in prison for other crimes when he admitted last month that the evidence in the case proves beyond a reasonable doubt that he murdered Marie-Chantale Desjardins.

The grey-haired man sat quietly in the prisoner’s box on Monday, wearing a green jacket and with his hands handcuffed in front of him. He showed no emotion and declined to address the court when offered the chance.

The 10-year-old Desjardins disappeared on July 16, 1994, after she left a friend’s house to return home in Ste-Thérèse, Que., northwest of Montreal.

Her body was found four days later in a wooded area bearing injuries that suggested she’d been forcefully attacked from behind. Her bicycle and shoes were found nearby.

Her case went unsolved for nearly 30 years, until technological advances allowed experts to identify Courtemanche’s DNA on a sample taken at the time of the crime. A police investigation showed that he had been staying with his brother in the area at the time of the crime.

Di Salvo said the maximum sentence is justified because of the victim’s young age and vulnerability, the savage nature of the attack and Courtemanche’s lengthy criminal history.

“As for the character of the accused, the court sees no positive elements to consider,” the judge said. “He has spent a large part of his adult life in detention, and it is evident that the numerous prison sentences imposed upon him have had no deterrent effect.”

Quebec provincial police arrested Courtemanche for the 1994 murder at La Macaza Institution, in Quebec’s Laurentians region, in December 2023.

The judge noted Courtemanche has committed at least 86 criminal infractions and was declared a dangerous offender in 2015 and given an indeterminate sentence — which has no set end date — after his conviction for kidnapping a woman and assaulting her with a knife.

Di Salvo praised the courage and dignity of the victim’s mother, Sylvie Desjardins, who had read a powerful tribute to her slain daughter during the hearing in October. 

“On one side, the accused showed the ugliest that we could imagine of a human being,” she said. “On the other side, Mrs. Desjardins convinced us that there is still beauty that survives such a painful event. The court hopes that, 31 years later, the finality of this decision will bring some peace to the lives of Marie-Chantal Desjardins’ family.”

Second-degree murder carries an automatic life sentence, with a parole ineligibility that ranges between 10 and 25 years. Both the Crown and defence had suggested the strongest penalty in Courtemanche’s case.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 10, 2025.