The NGO Rio de Paz released this Wednesday (29) data showing that 93 children and adolescents aged 0 to 14 years have been victims of stray bullets in the state of Rio de Janeiro since 2007, when cases began to be recorded by the institution. The number represents an average of five victims per year.
The information was passed on a day after the Federal Supreme Court (STF) decided, by majority vote, that the state of Rio de Janeiro should compensate, in about R$ 200,000, the family of a boy who died at the age of 3 stray bullet victim age. Luiz Felipe Rangel Bento Paz was shot in the head while sleeping indoors, in the Quitanda community, in Costa Barros, in the northern part of the capital of Rio de Janeiro. A police operation was carried out on the day, in June 2014.
“These are cases that leave us appalled. The 3-year-old boy was shot in the head while he was sleeping. And only now, nine years after the crime, does the STF understand that the state of Rio is somehow responsible for this boy’s death. Lately, it is good to point out, but it is a breath of fresh air for this family that has been seeking reparation. This sets precedents for other similar cases to be judged in the same way”, says João Luís Silva, social articulator of the NGO Rio de Paz.
The Court of Justice of the State of Rio de Janeiro (TJ-RJ) had denied the payment of compensation, claiming that the state was not responsible for the death, since it was not possible to prove that the projectile that hit the boy came from police weapons. . According to the records, the projectile was not found and, therefore, there was no expertise.
Minister Gilmar Mendes highlighted, during a session last Tuesday (28), that the police did not use body cameras. Minister André Mendonça questioned: “What do you mean the projectile was not found? The boy was at home, sleeping, ”he said. According to him, the state was silent for not using all means to clarify the child’s death. Justices Edson Fachin and Ricardo Lewandowski accompanied the vote in favor of compensation.
According to the decision, the boy’s mother will receive compensation of R$ 100,000, and the sister and aunt will receive R$ 50,000 each. The values must be corrected.
A CNN contacted the government of Rio and is awaiting a position.
Source: CNN Brasil
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