Conduct adjustment term due to the death of João Alberto Freitas at the Carrefour Supermarket: an example of good institutional practice

Abstract

On November 19, 2020, João Alberto Freitas, a black man, was attacked and killed by employees of a supermarket belonging to the Carrefour chain in the city of Porto Alegre/RS. The scene was filmed by several people who were in the place and the images won the world. Also in December 2020, representatives of the Federal Public Defender´s Office, Rio Grande do Sul Public Defender's Office, the Federal Public Ministry, the Public Ministry of the State of Rio Grande do Sul and the Public Ministry of Labor decided to meet. Instead of promoting parallel and redundant actions, a joint action was chosen, aiming at the construction of an agreement with the Carrefour Group that could result in a TAC (Term of Adjustment of Conduct), in which measures capable of guaranteeing a adequate response to society due to the serious facts that resulted in the death of João Alberto Freitas. The good practice was characterized, in the first place, by a joint action of all the institutions of the justice system with the attribution to act in the case of the death of João Alberto Freitas. Second, for the search for an extrajudicial and speedy solution in the face of what happened. Thirdly, for an answer that embraced the main demands of organized civil society, in this case, the black movement.