By Canadian Press

Depression clouded judgment of man accused of killing ailing wife: psychiatrist

Feb 6, 2019 | 12:36 PM

MONTREAL — A man on trial for second-degree murder was suffering from depression that affected his ability to make decisions on the day he smothered his ailing wife with a pillow, a jury has heard.

But Michel Cadotte, 57, was not psychotic and knew right from wrong, psychiatrist Louis Morissette testified on behalf of the defence.

Cadotte told the jury Monday that he suffocated his wife, Jocelyne Lizotte, because he wanted to end her suffering. Lizotte, 60, was living in a long-term care centre with late-stage Alzheimer’s disease.

Under cross-examination Tuesday, Cadotte acknowledged that he was aware of what he was doing and the consequences of his actions.

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A year before the killing, Cadotte had sought a medically assisted death for Lizotte but was told she didn’t qualify because she was not at the end of her life and could not consent.

The couple had been married 19 years at the time of her death on Feb. 20, 2017.

The Canadian Press