Brazil’s Supreme Court imposes steep sentences for Marielle Franco murder
Al Jazeera
The shooting of Franco, an activist, raised questions about political violence and corruption within Brazil’s government.
A panel on Brazil’s Supreme Court has ruled to convict five men accused of plotting the 2018 assassination of a human rights leader-turned politician Marielle Franco and her driver, Anderson Gomes.
The justices on the panel were unanimous in Wednesday’s decision, which marked the climax of a closely watched trial that raised questions about polarisation, corruption and race in Brazilian society.
“Human justice is not capable of soothing this pain,” Justice Carmen Lucia told the victims’ families, as the court handed down decades-long sentences to the five defendants.
At the time of her death, Franco, 38, was a city councillor in the city of Rio de Janeiro, just one year into her term. She was considered an up-and-coming member of the left-wing Socialism and Liberty Party.
A Black woman from the favelas — Brazil’s densely populated, low-income neighbourhoods — Franco was best known for campaigning for the rights of LGBTQ people, racial minorities and women.
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