Ottawa·NewHow survivors, families and first responders looked back on an Ottawa ‘horror story.’How survivors, families and first responders looked back on an Ottawa ‘horror story’Listen to this articleEstimated 6 minutesKim Rabot’s family members, alongside her boyfriend at the time, gather at the cemetery after her funeral on Oct. 30, 1975. Rabot’s casket was also a light blue colour. (Ottawa Citizen, City of Ottawa Archives, 028433)Oct. 27, 2025, marked 50 years since Ottawa was unmoored by a tragic series of events that continue to quietly resonate in the city to this day.On a Monday afternoon in October 1975, a deeply troubled high school student named Robert Poulin raped and murdered his neighbour, 17-year-old Glebe Collegiate Institute student Kim Rabot, at his home. Poulin then biked to his school, St. Pius X Catholic High School, with a sawed-off shotgun, opened fire on his religion class, wounded several students including 18-year-old Mark Hough, then used the gun to kill himself in the hallway. Hough died over a month later in hospital, a victim of one of the first mass shootings at a Canadian high school. Kim Rabot, left, and Mark Hough, right, were the victims of the Oct. 27, 1975, murders committed in Ottawa by Robert Poulin. (CBC/Hough family)But there was much more to the story than that: a legacy of emotional wreckage whose full depth was not understood even to the people most deeply affected by the events. “What I noticed most was the ongoing theme that most people didn’t talk about it,” Robert Poulin’s older sister Sandy, who asked that her married name not be used, said via email.”I thought it was only our family.” Poulin’s parents stand outside their home on Oct. 28, 1975. (City of Ottawa Archives, Ottawa Journal, 028425)To explore that difficult legacy for a modern audience largely unfamilar with what happened, CBC Ottawa launched a multimedia look back at Oct. 27, 1975, including a mining of CBC’s own archives to understand how the murders were covered in the vastly different media landscape of 50 years ago. The series began with a look at the “no holds barred” coroner’s inquest that unearthed unsettling details about Poulin, and the debate about gun control that followed. It also offered a rare account of the impact on the Poulin family. The first in a number of accompanying videos showed little-seen footage of St. Pius in the aftermath of the shooting, as well as a trove of Ottawa Journal and Ottawa Citizen photos preserved by the City of Ottawa Archives. WATCH | The murder of Kim Rabot and the shooting at St. Pius X High School, 50 years later:Retired Ottawa police officer Bill Shepheard gave his raw account of what it was like to be one of the first emergency responders to set foot inside St. Pius X after the shooting. WATCH | ‘That call was difficult,’ says officer who rushed to scene:Retired Ottawa police officer recalls the aftermath of the 1975 St. Pius X High School shootingBill Shepheard, an Ottawa police officer, had no blueprint for how to respond to a school shooting at St. Pius X High School on Oct. 27, 1975. (Videography and editing by Mathieu Deroy. Set design by Michel Aspirot.)The second story in the series focused on Kim Rabot through the memories of her classmates at Glebe Collegiate. “There’s no way I can tolerate her just being remembered as a victim of a terrible, heinous crime,” said friend Fred May, who helped launch a memorial fund and award in Rabot’s honour. WATCH | Victim of shocking 1975 Ottawa murder ‘a beautiful person inside and out’:The third story traced the impact of Mark Hough’s death on his family, who for decades kept their memories of Hough and the shooting locked away. The Houghs finally opened up on the occasion of this retrospective. “Our family has been able to process a trauma we had, to use [my sister] Teri’s words, stuffed into our private memory boxes,” said Hough’s sister Janet Hough via email. WATCH | Family reflects on 1975 shooting death of student Mark Hough:Hough’s classmates shared additional memories of the gifted hockey player and friendly face. WATCH | Mark Hough’s fellow St. Pius students reflect on what was lost:Schoolmates share memories of Mark HoughMark Hough was a gifted hockey player and kind soul who was taken far too soon, his school friends say.The fourth and final story heard from some of the survivors of the St. Pius X shooting, as well as other school alumni. As one shared: “A lot of people carry the trauma and scars.” WATCH | The survivors of one of Canada’s first school shootings, 50 years later:CBC’s This Is Ottawa podcast heard even more stories from the survivors: LISTEN | The school shooting that shocked Ottawa 50 years ago:This is Ottawa20:02The school shooting that shocked Ottawa 50 years agoIn October 1975, an 18-year-old student walked into an Ottawa high school — spraying bullets into a classroom — then killing himself. CBC Reporter Guy Quenneville dug through archives and interviewed dozens of people — including those who survived that day. Robyn Bresnahan talks to Guy about how that school shooting resonates half a century later.Bob Davidson, a St. Pius student who was in the classroom next door to the one that was shot up, talked about how his experience of that day led to his career as a paramedic in Ottawa. WATCH | ‘My first exposure to critical incident stress for sure’:He helped his fellow students after a school shooting — then became a career paramedicBob Davidson says a strange sense of calm overcame him when a shooting broke out at Ottawa’s St. Pius X High School in October 1975. The experience led him to become a paramedic, a job he went on to do for over 40 years. (Videography and editing by Mathieu Deroy. Set design by Michel Aspirot.)Davidson also went on CBC’s Ottawa Morning to talk about the wider ramifications of the event. LISTEN | Paramedic and St. Pius alumnus Bob Davidson also spoke to “Ottawa Morning”:Ottawa Morning12:0350 years later, a survivor reflects on school shooting at St. Pius X high schoolThe 1975 shooting left the community reeling and also became part of the heated debate on gun control. In a series launching today, CBC is sharing the experiences of many people whose lives changed that day. Bob Davidson was a grade 12 student at the time and shares his story for the first time.St. Pius alumnus Shawn Charland, who was in the cafeteria when the shooting unfolded, shared with CBC his recorded audio conversations with late teacher Dave Albert, one of the unsung heroes of Oct. 27, 1975. According to Charland, the 50th anniversary was in part “a chance to mark the sacrifices that were made by people who didn’t look for the limelight.”WATCH | Late teacher’s memories of shooting survive in former student’s tapes:Student shares tapes of late teacher’s 1975 shooting account Dave Albert was one of the teachers at St. Pius X High School when a student opened fire on his classmates and took his own life with the gun on Oct. 27, 1975. Albert died four years ago, but his account of the shooting’s aftermath survives in taped conversations with one of his former pupils, Shawn Charland. Charland shared the tapes with CBC. (Videography and editing by Mathieu Deroy. Production design by Michel Aspirot. Additional videography by Francis Deschênes.)If you or someone you know is struggling, here’s where to look for help:Canada’sSuicide Crisis Helpline: Call or text 988.Kids Help Phone: 1-800-668-6868. Text 686868. Live chat counselling onthe website.Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention:Find a 24-hour crisis centre.This guide from theCentre for Addiction and Mental Healthoutlines how to talk about suicide with someone you’re worried about.If you’re worried someone you know may be at risk of suicide, you should talk to them about it, says the Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention. Here are some warning signs: Suicidal thoughts.Substance use.Purposelessness.Anxiety.Feeling trapped.Hopelessness and helplessness.Withdrawal.Anger.Recklessness.Mood changes.Producer: Jen BeardVideography and editing: Mathieu DeroyProduction design: Michel AspirotCopy editing: Alistair Steele
The murder of Kim Rabot and the St. Pius X school shooting: All our coverage of the tragedy’s 50th anniversary
