There has been a failure on the part of the state to guarantee right to life,' Cavallaro says. At the root of the problem is the police force and its tendency to fight violence with violence. Any Brazilian will tell you that paying cash bribes for, say, minor traffic infractions is part of daily life. So-called 'death squads' are commonly made up of moonlighting officers keen to use their arms for real. The investigative process in Brazil is also pitifully incompetent.
Police usually omit to do crime scene investigations or ballistic tests.
Impunity from justice is the accepted norm. In the city of Rio, between 30-40 per cent of homicide victims are not identified. Even in cases where the victim is identified, the inquiry is usually not completed. My estimate is that if you commit a homicide in Rio, your chances of being convicted are about 2 per cent or less,' says Cavallaro. According to the experiences of prisoners, torture is still common in police stations.