Montreal shooter charged with first-degree murder

The Canadian accused of opening fire at a Quebec separatist election victory rally, killing one person and wounding another, was charged Thursday with first degree murder and attempted murder. Richard Henry Bain, 61, appeared briefly at a Montreal court where the charges against him were read and a hearing was set for October 11. Bain is alleged to have opened fire outside a Montreal concert venue late Tuesday where Quebec's premier-elect Pauline Marois was celebrating her separatist Parti Quebecois' victory in provincial elections. A bystander was killed and another wounded before the shooter, who was captured on video dressed in a balaclava and bathrobe and was shouting anti-French slogans, was subdued by a police officer. Prosecutor Eliane Perrault said the three counts of attempted murder involved two civilians, including the one wounded in the incident, and the police officer who stopped the rampage. Neither the suspect's lawyer, Elfriede Duclervil, nor the prosecution requested that Bain undergo psychiatric evaluation and he was deemed in sufficiently good health to appear in court. In all, 16 charges were filed against Bain, the English-speaking owner of a hunting and fishing business in Mont Tremblant, 150 kilometers (90 miles) north of Montreal. Most of the charges were for illegal weapons possessions, including two weapons found on him at the time of the shooting, three others in his parked car, and more in his home. He also was charged with arson. Bain was in possession of 22 registered and unregistered firearms. Duclervil said he had only had a brief conversation with his client and would have a longer talk with him later in the day.