MONTREAL — If you asked Luc Horne what he thinks of the court system in Montreal, he’d tell you the bureaucrats he’s spoken to are showing a “lack of heart” with his exceptional case.
About six weeks ago, his son Jeremy died tragically inside a friend’s home in the Montreal district of NDG.
The same night, the car Jeremy Horne was driving was issued a parking ticket.
WATCH ABOVE: Montreal refuses to dismiss ticket after son’s death
It’s only a $53 fine, but Horne wants it nullified.
The City of Montreal has told him no.
“I want some mercy, a death should be respected in some way,” said Horne.
READ MORE: Montreal father fighting parking ticket following son’s death
The story has touched many in Montreal’s legal community.
“To me, of course, there should be a certain compassion that should be shown by the city,” said veteran attorney Sharon Sandiford.
“The city does have discretionary powers in these types of cases.”
Alfredo Munoz, the president of the ticket-fighting group SOS Ticket, goes one step further.
He said the bureaucrats should be “more human.”
“It’s procedures, procedures, procedures, and that’s it,” said Munoz.
“That’s all that matters to them.”
“The city has a budget for tickets, that’s the sad part.”
Mayor Denis Coderre weighed into the controversy Tuesday morning, saying he will not intervene and will not make any exception for the Horne family.
“Well, we have a process, you cannot play with tickets. When you get a ticket you have to go through the process,” said Coderre.
“Would you like to see the mayor taking care of tickets?”
Coderre encouraged the Horne family to contest the ticket, show up in court and present its arguments to a judge.
With the current caseload at the Montreal Municipal Courthouse, it could take up to two years before the grieving father gets his day in court.
“It’s unacceptable,” Horne said.
“I don’t want to relive this nightmare again in two years.”
Comments