Fachin votes to maintain restrictions on police operations in RJ; Judgment is suspended

Minister Edson Fachin of the Federal Supreme Court (STF) voted on Wednesday to maintain restrictions on the operations carried out by the Rio de Janeiro Military Police. Fachin is a rapporteur of the process that deals with police lethality in the state capital.

The Court definitely judges the argument of non -compliance with the Fundamental Precept (ADPF) No. 635, known with ADPF of the favelas. In the action, which was filed in 2019 by the Brazilian Socialist Party (PSB), the Court has already determined measures to reduce lethality during operations carried out by the Rio Military Police against organized crime in the communities of the state capital.

Read more: Supreme resumes trial on police lethality in Rio

During the ADPF, the Supreme Court forced the use of body cameras in police uniforms and vehicles, as well as the determination of early warning of operations to health and education authorities in order to protect schools and shooting units from shooting between police and criminals.

By giving a definitive vote (merit) on the issue, Fachin reaffirmed several determinations for the PM’s performance during operations and criminal investigation of death residents and police officers that occurred during operations.

After the minister’s vote, the trial was suspended. According to the president of the court, Luís Roberto Barroso, the trial should be resumed next month.

Fachin made the following determinations:

• Disclosure of Data on Death in Operations – The State of Rio should disclose data on deaths from police lethality. The data should contain the occurrences with death per unit or battalion and should clarify whether the agent was in service and if the death occurred in a police operation;
• Differentiated use of force – Police actions should observe the principles contained in Law 13.060/2014, a norm that has defined that the use of firearms by security agents must follow the principles of reasonableness and proportionality, ie the proportional use of force police according to the circumstance;
• Psychological follow -up of police – oblige the participation of police officers involved in operations with deaths in a psychological assistance program;
• Helicopters – the use of helicopters should occur only in cases of “strict need”, which should be proven in a report after the operation;
• Home Searches – Only in the act, not being admitted the forced entry of police from anonymous complaint as an exclusive justification for the diligence;
• Ambulances in police operations – determines the regulation of state law for the mandatory monitoring of ambulances in operations;
• Place preservation and traces of crime – agents must preserve the traces of crimes to avoid improper removal of corpses and disposal of evidence;
• Operations near schools and hospitals – locations cannot be used as a basis for operations;
• Police Operations Reports – Police should draw up a report of operations, which should be referred to the Public Prosecution Service;
• Cameras in the Uniforms – The State of Rio should implement audio and video recording systems on the vehicles of the Military and Civil Police and the police of police;
• Expertise – Experts should keep, in electronic means, all expert evidence produced in investigations of crimes against life;
• Investigation – Creation of a committee to monitor compliance with certain measures.

Vote

Fachin has countered accusations that the court is preventing the regular work of Rio police and strengthening organized crime.

In the minister’s assessment, territorial disputes, the circulation of heavy weaponry and the presence of criminals from other states in Rio communities are situations that occur before the ADPF is processed in the Supreme.

“Impute chronic problems and from the source prior to the present argument to measures imposed by this Court is not only in serious misconception, but in untruth,” he said.

The rapporteur also stressed that the restrictions imposed by the Supreme Court on police operations did not prohibit these operations.

“There is no consistent data, document or analysis that establishes causal links between those pre -existing problems and the measures taken by this Court under ADPF 635, which have never prohibited police operations, but only require attendance to parameters Minimum planning, transparency and external control, ”he said.

Results

Edson Fachin also stressed that the measures taken by the Court reduced the numbers of police lethality in Rio.

Quoting data from the Rio Public Prosecution Service, the rapporteur said that the reduction of deaths from police intervention was 52% between 2019 and 2023. According to the data, in 2023, 871 deaths were recorded during operations. In 2019, the year the ADPF was filed, 1,814 deaths were recorded.

“These numbers show that the adoption of transparency and control parameters in police activity are able to enable the exercise of public security functions competently and without raising crime rates,” he said.