Senate passes bill to allow remote custodial hearings
The situation of people being tortured in custody could become worse with the bill of law. A recent report by Conectas and IDDD shows how what victims say is being overlooked.
Man, who was caught in the act of committing a crime, comes before the judge in a custodial hearing in São Paulo (SP)
On Tuesday (18) the Senate passed a bill of law to allow custodial hearings to be carried out via video-conference, during the Covid-19 pandemic. Bill 1.473/2021, the author of which is, Senator Flávio Arns, backtracks on a recent decision taken by the National Congress itself, that rejected the possibility of remote custodial hearings, when it overthrew presidential vetoes of the ´anti-crime´ package. The bill has been passed to the Chamber of Deputies.
“This decision jeopardises the reasoning behind an important mechanism for identifying illegal imprisonment and police violence.” Said Carolina Diniz, Consultant on the Conectas Facing Institutional Violence programme. Since 2015, following a Resolution by the National Justice Council, people who are arrested in flagrante delicto must come before a judge within 24 hours. This ensures the magistrate can verify whether the person suffered torture or ill-treatment during the arrest.
The bill that has been passed is sustained by public health arguments. It is said that remote custodial hearings are necessary to contain the spread of Covid-19. However, a technical letter from Conectas and IDDD says that these justifications do not make sense. Some states are still holding in-person custodial hearings, which shows it is possible to establish efficient public health guidelines to limit contamination by the virus in these places. The letter from the organisations goes on to point out that there is no sign of the end of the pandemic, which means the law is not exceptional in nature.
“The financial cost of purchasing suitable video-conference equipment (i.e. simulating a setting that is as close as possible to in-person hearings) is far greater than the cost of reorganising existing hearing rooms to bring them into line with public health guidelines and to implement biosafety measures.” It says in the letter. According to Diniz, given the high cost of this equipment it is possible that the use of video-conference may not be withdrawn after the end of the public health crisis.
Custodial hearing room at the Roraima Justice Court. Acrylic sheets have been installed due to Covid-19. Photo: Orib Ziedson/TJRR
In addition, according to Diniz, custodial hearings via video-conference are being held in public security offices and detention centres, making it impossible to guarantee a secure environment in which statements about torture or ill-treatment can come forth, as is set out in international norms, given that these are the places where those who may have carried out the acts of violence are circulating and working.
Remote hearings could worsen the situation of people who are arrested on the spot, being tortured. As a recent report points out, “Investigações em Labirinto” (Investigation in the Labyrinth), produced by Conectas and IDDD, indications and denouncements of police violence at face-to-face custodial hearings are already ignored by magistrates and other public authorities, due to a system in which victims´ words are disregarded, in order to protect security staff. Irregularities and ill-treatment in a virtual setup will make it even more difficult to hold officers of the state accountable.
