RIO DE JANEIRO — The trial of the alleged killers of a Rio de Janeiro city councilwoman begins Wednesday, an assassination that shook Brazil and reverberated around the world.
Protesters began gathering early Wednesday in front of the courthouse in downtown Rio where two former police officers will stand trial in the deaths of 38-year-old councilwoman Marielle Franco and her driver, Anderson Gomes, on March 14, 2018. Ronnie Lessa is accused of firing the gun in the drive-by shooting, while Élcio Queiroz is accused of being the driver who pursued Franco.
Lessa and Queiroz were arrested in 2019 and have been detained since then, awaiting trial. They signed plea bargains confessing their roles, but a jury will have the final word on whether they are guilty.
Known universally by her first name, Marielle stood out as one of the only Black women on Rio’s city council. She was also bisexual and raised in one of Rio’s poor communities known as favelas.
“The moment we’ve been waiting for, for six years, has arrived,” the Marielle Franco Institute said on its website ahead of the trial. The institute was founded by Franco’s family after her death.
“This is a decisive moment for everyone who fights for justice and for those who believe that Brazil needs to be a serious country that doesn’t allow women, black people, (LGBTQ+) and favela residents to be brutally murdered,” the website said.
Jurors could technically overrule the plea bargains struck by federal police with Lessa and Queiroz, but analysts say that is unlikely.
The accused will face questions over the double deaths and also the attempted killing of Fernanda Chaves, Franco’s assistant, who was injured but survived. Chaves is expected to testify in the next few days.
Prosecutors are seeking the maximum prison sentence for the double killings, which could reach 84 years each, according to Rio’s public prosecutors’ office.
The killing of an elected representative was seen by many as an attack on democracy, in no small part because of Marielle’s humble upbringing and stalwart efforts to improve the lives of ordinary Rio residents. Following her election in 2016, she fought against violence targeting women while defending human rights and social programs. Her assertiveness and mere presence ruffled some, but she remained unbowed.
Outrage over her killing sparked mass protests, and she has become a symbol of left-wing resistance. Her silhouette can be found printed on T-shirts and painted on walls nationwide. People called for her killers to be brought to justice, as well as those who ordered the hit.
In September, Edilson Barbosa dos Santos was convicted of dismantling the car used in the drive-by shooting. But many see the trial opening on Wednesday as the first time some of the main people allegedly responsible for her death may finally be held to account.
Both defendants will participate in the trial by videoconference from the facilities where they are imprisoned. Lessa is in Sao Paulo while Queiroz is in Brazil’s capital, Brasilia. The jury will hear nine witnesses, seven called by the state public prosecutors’ office and two others by Lessa’s defense. Queiroz’s defense opted not to call any.
For years, central questions about the case have remained: Who ordered Marielle’s killing, and what were their motives? Those questions became a rallying cry among those clamoring for justice.
Federal authorities started investigating once leftist President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva took office in 2023, having frustrated far-right President Jair Bolsonaro’s reelection bid months earlier.
And in March, Federal Police detained federal lawmaker Chiquinho Brazão and his brother Domingos Brazão, a member of Rio state’s accounts watchdog, on suspicion of ordering Franco’s killing. Both are allegedly connected to criminal groups, known as militias, which illegally charge residents for various services, including protection. They have denied any involvement in the killing or with militias.
In his plea bargain, Lessa told police that the two politician brothers hired him and informed him that the then-chief of the state’s civil police, Rivaldo Barbosa, had signed off beforehand. Barbosa was also arrested in March.
Police accuse the politicians of ordering her killing because she was an obstacle to militias’ interests. The judicial process regarding the alleged masterminds is currently proceeding before the Supreme Court.
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