The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR or Commission) has filed two new cases with the Inter-American Court of Human Rights  - one against Brazil and one against Venezuela.  The following information is taken from press releases issued by the Commission.

The case against Brazil is Cosme Rosa Genoveva, Evandro de Oliveira et al. (Favela Nova Brasília), Case 11.566. It involves the extrajudicial executions of 26 individuals—including six children—in the context of police raids carried out by the Rio de Janeiro Civil Police on October 18, 1994, and May 8, 1995, in the shantytown of Nova Brasília. The police authorities justified these deaths by means of affidavits alleging “resistance to arrest.” In addition, in the context of the raid on October 18, 1994, three victims—C.S.S. (15 years old), L.R.J. (19 years old), and J.F.C. (16 years old)—were victims of torture and acts of sexual violence at the hands of police officers. The IACHR established that these events occurred within a context and pattern of excessive use of force and extrajudicial executions carried out by police in Brazil, especially in Rio de Janeiro. Moreover, the Commission found that the context in which the events in this case took place has been tolerated and even fostered by State institutions. The Commission also established that this context includes a lack of accountability mechanisms and a situation of impunity surrounding these violations.  Both the deaths of the 26 individuals and the acts of torture and sexual violence have remained unpunished, and to date the criminal actions related to the majority of the incidents of the case—the acts of torture and sexual violence in the 1994 raid and the deaths in the 1995 raid—are barred by statute of limitations in domestic law.

In its Merits Report, the Commission recommended that  Brazil conduct—by means of judicial authorities independent from the police—an exhaustive, impartial, and effective investigation into the violations that were found, in order to determine the truth and punish those responsible, taking into account the pattern of excessive use of lethal force by the police and the possible omissions, delays, acts of negligence, and obstructions of justice caused by agents of the State. It also recommended that the State guarantee proper and full compensation; immediately eliminate the practice of automatically recording deaths perpetrated by the police as “resistance to arrest”; and put an end to impunity with regard to police violence in general, adapting its domestic laws, administrative regulations, and operational plans and procedures. The IACHR also recommended that the State establish internal and external oversight and accountability systems to enforce the obligation to investigate, within a gender and ethnic-racial perspective, all cases in which law enforcement agents use lethal force and/or sexual violence; that it implement plans to modernize and professionalize police forces; regulate police procedures involving legitimate use of force; and train police personnel on how to effectively deal with people from the most vulnerable segments of society, including, children, women, and residents of shantytowns, in order to overcome the stigma that all poor people are criminals.

On May 19, 2015, after granting multiple extensions and making a number of efforts, the Commission determined that the State of Brazil had not complied with the recommendations contained in the Merits Report. Consequently, the Commission submitted to matter to the Inter-American Court.  The Commission believes the case offers the Court the opportunity to expand its case law concerning the obligation to properly investigate violent deaths as a result of the use of lethal force by State agents. 

The second case against Venezuela is that of Johan Alexis Ortiz, (Case 12.270), and involves the death of Mr. Ortiz on February 15, 1998, on the premises of the Caño Negro Rural Commandos (Comandos Rurales). Johan Alexis Ortiz was a student at the National Guard Training School of Cordero (Escuela de Formación de Guardias Nacionales de Cordero, ESGUARNAC), and he died after being shot during simulation exercises with real bullets. The exercises, held on the premises of the military facility, were a requirement to complete his officer training at the institution.

The Commission established that the Venezuelan military authorities created the risk by failing to put proper controls in place related to operations and emergency plans as well as to the use of weapons and ammunition. The Commission also established that the State had not provided a satisfactory explanation for the use of live ammunition and failed to comply with safety measures. The Commission also concluded that the State had not responded properly or on a timely basis to the injuries suffered by Mr. Ortiz, as it did not have specialized medical personnel or an ambulance on site that would enable him to receive medical care while he was being transferred to a medical center. The Commission further determined that there were multiple irregularities in the domestic proceedings relating to the matter, violating the principles of independence and impartiality, the requirement of due diligence and the guarantee of a reasonable time period.  

In its Report on the Merits, the Commission recommended that the State carry out a complete, impartial, and effective investigation into the established violations of human rights, in order to determine and punish anyone who masterminded and perpetrated the acts described; order any appropriate administrative, disciplinary, or criminal measures in response to State officials’ actions or omissions that contributed to the denial of justice and the impunity surrounding the facts in this case; and provide adequate reparation, both material and moral, for the human rights violations stated in the report. The Commission also recommended that the necessary measures be developed to ensure that the human rights of students at the National Guard Training School are properly protected in the training and educational courses and practices. The State of Venezuela made no response at all to the notification of the Merits Report. 

The Commission believes Mr. Ortiz's case will enable the Inter-American Court to delve deeper into the use of lethal force in the context of training carried out by a State security force. Specifically, the Court is being asked for its opinion concerning precautionary and response mechanisms States should put into practice to prevent violations of the right to life and physical integrity of individuals who are members or students of a State security service. The case will also enable the Court to rule on the specifics of the duty to investigate with due diligence any deaths that occur under such circumstances.

(cgb)