The facts of the case refer to the threats and eventual murder suffered by Wilson Nogueira de Carvalho, a human rights lawyer and activist campaigning against death squads and the impunity which they enjoyed.

The IA Court established standards regarding the protection of the integrity and the life of human rights defenders, and the duty of states to create the conditions necessary for the realization of their labors. The Court also stressed the individual and collective impact of the violations of the rights of human rights defenders.