MONTREAL - A Quebec man charged with helping his severely disabled uncle kill himself has been found not guilty.
A jury in Alma acquitted Stephan Dufour on Friday on a charge of aiding or abetting his uncle, Chantal Maltais, to commit suicide in September 2006.
Maltais, who suffered from polio and was confined to a wheelchair, had badgered his family for years to help him end his life.
Dufour, who pleaded not guilty, testified he installed an apparatus made of cords and a chain inside Maltais' bedroom closet.
The court heard that Maltais used the contraption to hang himself two days later.
Dufour wept during his trial when he recalled how his uncle often begged him to help him die.
"He asked me every day to help him commit suicide," Dufour, 30, told the court.
"I didn't want to do it, but I wasn't able to take it anymore. I felt like I was in prison."
Several of Dufour's relatives, who were inside the courtroom Friday, couldn't contain their emotions when the verdict was read, his cousin said.
"Everyone cried in joy, with relief, with happiness," Caroline Thivierge told all-news TV channel LCN.
"We're all proud of him and we're all behind him 100 per cent."
Thivierge said Dufour didn't really react when the judge read him the verdict.
While it is not illegal to commit suicide in Canada, it is to help someone complete the act.
