II. PROCEEDINGS BEFORE THE COURT 5. Notification to the State and the representatives. 2 The submission of the case was notified to the State and the representatives in a communication dated August 24, 2021. 6. Brief with pleadings, motions and evidence. On November 23, 2021, the representatives submitted their brief with pleadings, motions and evidence (hereinafter “pleadings and motions brief”), pursuant to Articles 25 and 40 of the Court’s Rules of Procedure. The representatives agreed with the Commission’s arguments, complemented its line of reasoning, alleged new violations of the American Convention 3 and proposed specific reparations. 7. Answering brief. 4 On March 30, 2022, the State submitted its response to the submission of the case together with observations on the pleadings and motions brief (hereinafter “answering brief”) pursuant to Articles 25 and 41 of the Court’s Rules of Procedure. In this brief, the State submitted five preliminary objections and rejected the alleged violations and the proposed measures of reparation. 8. Observations on the preliminary objections. On May 21, 2022, the representatives and the Commission presented, respectively, their observations on the preliminary objections raised by the State. 9. Provisional measures. In an Order of August 25, 2022, the Court denied a request for provisional measures submitted by the representatives of the alleged victims on May 14, 2022. 5 10. Supervening evidence. On August 24, 2022, the representatives forwarded the judgment of the criminal court of the Judicial District of Tlalnepantla, delivered on May 12, 2022, against Daniel García and Reyes Alpízar, as supervening evidence. 6 11. Public hearing. On July 6, 2022, 7 the President of the Court called the parties and the Commission to a public hearing on the preliminary objections and possible merits, reparations and 2 The alleged victim was represented by the “Pena Sin Culpa” collective, comprised of Simón Alejandro Hernández León, Daniel García Rodríguez and David Peña Rodríguez. 3 In particular, they referred to the alleged violations of the right to honor (Article 11 of the American Convention) to the detriment of Daniel García Rodríguez and Reyes Alpízar Ortiz, and to the integrity of their next of kin (Article 5 of the American Convention), to personal liberty, judicial guarantees, honor and judicial protection of the next of kin of the alleged victims (Articles 7, 8, 11 and 25 of the American Convention), and to personal liberty, judicial guarantees and legality and non-retroactivity resulting from a misuse of power (Articles 7, 8 and 25 of the American Convention). 4 The State appointed as its agents Martha Delgado Peralta, Undersecretary for Multilateral Affairs and Human Rights; Alejandro Celorio Alcántara, legal adviser; Roselia Margarita Barajas and Olea, Mexico’s Ambassador to Costa Rica; Cristopher Ballinas Valdés, Director General of Human Rights and Democracy; Salvador Tinajero Esquivel, assistant legal consultant “B”; Alfredo Uriel Pérez Manríquez, Director of International Law IV; Enrique Irazoque Palazuelos, Head of the Unit for the Defense of Human Rights of the Interior Ministry; Marcos Moreno Báez, Coordinator of International Human Rights Affairs; María Dalia Cajero Jacinto, general legal adviser; Fernando Ulises Cárdenas Uribe, Central legal prosecutor, Attorney General’s Office of Mexico; Martín Berdeja Rivas, Director General of Human Rights and Gender Equality; Rubén Durán Miranda, General Legal and Advisory Coordinator, and Javier García Molina, Subdirector of Appeals and Human Rights of the Judicial Branch of Mexico. 5 On May 14, 2022, the representatives submitted a request for provisional measures “for the purpose of preventing the detention and imprisonment of the alleged direct victims in the instant case” following their conviction in a court of First Instance issued on March 12, 2022, in which they were sentenced to 35 years imprisonment for homicide. The full Court decided to deny said request. Cf. Case of García Rodríguez et al. v. Mexico. Provisional Measures. Order of the President of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights of August 25, 2022. https://www.corteidh.or.cr/docs/medidas/garciarodriguez_se_01.pdf 6 et seq.). Cf. Criminal Court of the Judicial District of Tlalnepantla, Judgment of May 12, 2022 (evidence file, folios 70391 7 Cf. Case of García Rodríguez et al. v. Mexico. Call to a public hearing. Order of the President of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights of July 6, 2022. https://www.corteidh.or.cr/docs/asuntos/garcia_rodriguez_y_otro_06_07_22.pdf -5-