22. The complaint reports that on October 28, 1996, federal authorities sent a delegation from
Brasilia to investigate Nogueira’s murder. The delegation of federal deputies urged local
authorities to investigate Nogueira’s killing and to prosecute those responsible.
23. According to the
on the Governor of
Secretary for Public
Deputy Secretary of
Human Rights. 13
complaint, the Public Prosecutor also visited Natal and exerted pressure
Rio Grande do Norte to suspend Pinto from his position as Deputy
Security. Continuing efforts to keep Pinto from resuming his post as
Public Security have been made by the Federal Attorney General for
24. The complaint notes that despite these visits, federal agents closed investigations into
Nogueira’s murder without naming suspects for indictment, notwithstanding significant
evidence pointing to the involvement of members of the Golden Boys in the crime. The
complaint alleges that one of the primary suspects in Nogueira’s murder is civil police officer,
Jorge Luiz Fernandes. Federal investigators identified him, but, according to the petition,
conducted inadequate inquiries into his involvement in the crime because they failed to pursue
various leads or to question potentially key witnesses.
25. The complaint cites as an indicator of impunity and lack of preventive action by the State,
the fact that, although Fernandes was already under pre-trial detention for his participation in
other homicides, he was released from custody the weekend of Nogueira’s murder, as was
documented by the detention center’s official registry and Pinto’s statement. Judicial
authorities in Natal permitted Fernandes to make conjugal visits to his wife, inconsistent with
Brazilian law, which only permits detainees to receive conjugal visits (not to leave prison for
that purpose). 14 Fernandes also frequently left his place of detention during times not specified
by the judicial order, escorted by Maurílio Pinto de Medeiros, Jr. and the personal driver of the
Deputy Secretary for Public Security, Medeiros Pinto. While outside jail, Fernandes and the
other Golden Boys allegedly intimidated and threatened witnesses to prevent them from
testifying and reporting criminal police activity.
IV.
POSITIONS OF THE PARTIES
A.
Position of the petitioners
26. Complainants allege that the State is directly responsible for the murder of Gilson Nogueira
due to the involvement of its state agents. The State failed to suppress routine acts of violence
committed by police agents, thus allowing a climate of impunity to develop. The State also
failed to undertake thorough and meaningful investigations into Nogueira’s killing, to prosecute
those responsible, and to provide adequate and effective judicial recourse.
27. The petitioners maintain that the State failed to fulfill its obligations under the Convention
for the following reasons:
a. It withdrew police protection for Nogueira too soon.
b. It allowed violent and criminal members of the death squad known as the Golden Boys
to continue in active service in the police, thereby risking that they would continue to
misuse their authority by torturing and murdering those who, like Nogueira, dared to
object to their conduct.
c. It allowed Jorge Luiz Fernandes regularly to leave the precincts in which he was
detained, knowing that such outings jeopardized the lives of witnesses of the crimes
committed by him and those of others, like Nogueira, who were trying to have Fernandes
tried;
13 In August 2000, the Commission received information, not contradicted by the Government, that the abovementioned person was reinstated in his post.
14 The file contains a copy of the note from the Regular Judge for application of criminal law, Official Letter 108/96 of
October 31, 1996, indicating that Jorge Luiz Fernandes was authorized to leave prison with a police escort for conjugal
visits of six hours each twice a week. There is also a note from the Office of the Attorney General of Natal (RN)
accepting the accused’s request for these outings, dated July 31, 1995.
4