Henry Borel: Judge says Monique Medeiros suffered "social massacre"

Judge Elizabeth Machado Louro stated, in the early hours of this Thursday (4), that Monique Medeiros suffered a "social massacre" after the death of her son, Henry Borel, in March 2021. The statement was made during the reading of the sentence of the trial held at the II Jury Court of Rio de Janeiro.

After 11 days of trial, the Sentencing Council decided to downgrade the charge of intentional homicide attributed to Monique to manslaughter, when there is no intention to kill.

Henry's mother was convicted of torture by omission. When applying the judicial pardon in relation to the crime of manslaughter, the judge stated that the defendant had already been subjected to sufficiently severe consequences as a result of the case.

According to the judge, Monique was the target of a disproportionate social reaction, marked by public criticism, attacks on social media and attacks suffered during the period she was imprisoned.

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During the reading of the sentence, Elizabeth Machado Louro also made references to the social role attributed to women and mothers, stating that there was an excessive demand on Monique's figure after her son's death.

For her conviction, Monique received a sentence of 1 year and 4 months in detention. As she had already served a period of preventive detention longer than the sentence imposed, the punishment was considered extinct.

In the same trial, former councilor Jairo Souza Santos Júnior, Dr. Jairinho, was sentenced to 43 years, 9 months and 20 days in prison for the death of Henry Borel.

The Sentencing Council found him guilty of the crimes of qualified homicide, with aggravating factors of cruel means and resources that made it difficult for the victim to defend himself, in addition to increasing the sentence due to Henry being under 14 years old. Jairinho was also convicted of torture and coercion during the process.

The judge stated that there was "disproportionate violence" and classified the former councilor's conduct as marked by "rare and excessive cowardice" against a four-year-old child.

Jairinho must serve his sentence in an initially closed regime. In addition to prison, he was ordered to pay R$400,000 for moral damages to Henry's father, Leniel Borel.

The trial, which began on May 25, was the longest in the history of the Court of Justice of the State of Rio de Janeiro.

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The sentence ends one of the most emblematic criminal actions in the state, related to the death of Henry Borel, aged 4, which occurred in the early hours of March 8, 2021. According to the investigation, the boy died as a result of a liver laceration caused by blunt action inside the apartment where he lived with his mother and Jairinho.

After reading the sentence, the Public Ministry of Rio de Janeiro informed that it intends to appeal the decision related to Monique Medeiros. The defense of Leniel Borel, Henry's father, also announced that it will contest the result.

Jairo Souza's lawyers stated that they will request a mistrial. The defense maintains that there were mistakes in the Sentencing Council's decision and will seek a review of the sentence in higher courts.

Source: CNN