Judge Orlando Faccini Neto, responsible for presiding over the jury on the Kiss nightclub fire, even ordered the arrest of the four defendants, but a habeas corpus granted by the 1st Criminal Chamber of the Rio Grande do Sul Court of Justice suspended the measure. The judges of the TJ-RS will analyze the case.
Habeas corpus was initially given to Elissandro Spohr, known as Kiko, who was a partner at the club that caught fire on January 27, 2013, in Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul.
Afterwards, it was awarded to the other defendants in the trial – Mauro Londero Hoffmann, another partner of the establishment and the only one who was not on the scene on the night of the fire, Marcelo de Jesus dos Santos, vocalist of the band Gurizada Fandangueira, and Luciano Bonilha Leão, roadie of the group musical. Defendants’ defenses deny responsibility for the dead and wounded.
Appeal to higher instances. There is still an ongoing discussion at the Federal Supreme Court (STF) on the immediate compliance with the convictions defined by the Jury Court.
“Conviction for eventual intent is unprecedented in Brazil for this type of crime and, from now on, we have a framework so that everyone knows that nightclubs for our young people and places for public gatherings must be safe for people have fun and go back to your homes alive”, highlighted the prosecutor David Medina da Silva, one of those who served on the jury.
Manslaughter is one committed without intention. On the other hand, the intentional one, says the Penal Code, is the one in which it is recognized that the author wanted or took the risk of causing death.
The nightclub disaster, which killed 242 people and left 636 injured, began onstage, where the band Gurizada Fandangueira was performing, after a fireworks show.
Check out the main points of the judgment:
1. Greatest pity was for the partner of the Kiss nightclub who was at the scene of the accident
The sentencing and sentencing also took into account the circumstances in which the deaths took place amidst the nightclub fire.
The feathers were:
Elissandro Callegaro Spohr (club partner): 22 years and 6 months in prison
Mauro Londero Hoffmann (also a partner): 19 years and 6 months in prison
Marcelo de Jesus dos Santos (vocalist for the band Gurizada Fandangueira): 18 years of confinement
Luciano Bonilha Leão (band assistant): 18 years of confinement
2) Judgment was about the second biggest tragedy of its kind in the country
The Kiss Nightclub fire is the second biggest tragedy of its kind in the history of Brazil, after the fire on December 17, 1961 at the Circo Americano, in Niterói, in the metropolitan region of Rio de Janeiro. In this accident, 503 people died, most of them children.
3) “Condemnation is not revenge, it is an example for Brazil to see crime with intent”
One of the speeches that had the greatest impact on the case was given by the father of one of the victims and a member of the Association of Families of Victims and Survivors of the Tragedy of Santa Maria, Paulo Carvalho.
AT CNN, Carvalho said that the intention was not to seek “revenge”, but a conviction that serves as an “example” for crimes where there is eventual intent – when it is known that it can cause death and the risk is assumed anyway.
“What we consider fair is the eventual intent. This conviction is not revenge, it is an example for Brazil to see crime with intent. They [réus] they have taken risks countless times and these risks are taken by countless people who do not have the virtue of seeing others as lives, as people”, said Carvalho.
4) Foam that spread fire was the subject of debate between defense and prosecution
The fire that hit the Kiss nightclub spread through the foam that covered the stage and roof of the nightclub for sound insulation. The fire in the foam — incompatible with safety standards — generated toxic smoke, responsible for the death of most victims, according to experts.
After reports from survivors of the tragedy, the jury heard engineer Miguel Ângelo Pedroso, who was hired to renovate the nightclub. He claimed to have advised against the use of foams at the site, but stated that one of Kiss’ partners insisted on the idea.
Defense attorneys asserted throughout the trial that their clients did not act with intent, that the fire was an accident, and that the defendants themselves could have been fatal victims.
Reference: CNN Brasil
