Instability and violence marked the family: it moved frequently, and much of Lépine's early childhood was spent in Costa Rica and Puerto Rico, where his father was working for a Swiss mutual funds company. The family returned to Montreal permanently in 1968, shortly before a stock market crash led to the loss of much of the family's assets. Rachid was an authoritarian, possessive and jealous man, frequently violent towards his wife and his children. He had contempt for women and believed that they were intended only to serve men. He required his wife to act as his personal secretary, slapping her if she made any errors in typing, and forcing her to retype documents in spite of the cries of their toddler. He was also neglectful and abusive towards his children, particularly his son, and discouraged any tenderness, as he considered it spoiling.