Dr. Roger Perrault

National Director of Red Cross Blood Services division from 1974 to 1986. Perrault was at the centre of the tragedy as his organization was caught between the provincial funders and federal regulators in Canada and the safety of the general public. When the dust settled, many on the outside placed blame on the Red Cross for ignoring the signs that AIDS and Hepatitis C posed a serious threat to the blood system, but Perrault strongly believed he did the best he could. He never wavered, later accusing those gifted with hindsight for making him a scapegoat. He believed the only thing he was guilty of was not being clairvoyant. From his perspective, he did a very difficult job under highly complicated and strained circumstances. He and his legal team vigorously defended himself through multiple investigations and trials. He was never convicted of any crimes, but the stress took its toll as illness plagued him throughout his latter years.