A 47-year-old Terrebonne man has been charged following a case of road rage in broad daylight last summer on the Île-aux-Tourtes bridge.
The images went viral after a video showed Stéphanie Ross getting out of her vehicle to inspect damages following a fender bender and allegedly being knocked unconscious by a truck driver.
Construction workers told CTV News at the time that they had to intervene to stop further violence.
Even though the incident took place in August, it took until November for the Crown prosecutor to lay charges against the accused.
John Kirwin Labissiere was formally charged with one count of assault causing bodily harm.
He is currently free on bail.
John Kirwin Labissiere, 47, speaks to CTV News at the Valleyfield courthouse after being charged with assault causing bodily harm on Friday, Nov. 15, 2024. (CTV News)
When reached by CTV News outside the courtroom, he said, “You heard the next court date, we’ll see each other then.” He declined to comment further.
The complainant in the case says she wanted to come to court to be face-to-face with her alleged attacker. But she did say that after what happened to her, she had a hard time recognizing him.
Ross says the concussion she suffered that day affected her memory.
“With what I went through and with all the memory gaps that I have right now… I still can’t remember. I still don’t have that recollection of the events,” she said.
Ross says she’s suffered from a lot of anxiety since the incident and felt the justice system wasn’t moving fast enough. But now, she says she has renewed faith in justice.
“At the end, the prosecutor is extremely nice with me. She is explaining every single step of what’s going on and what I’m feeling, the emotions I’m going through right now, how things are going to be going on for the future, which are helpful,” Ross said.
“She’s given me resources for me to [help me out.]”
Labissiere does not have a criminal record and will now have to return to court on Jan. 31 for the next steps in the court proceedings.