Rio de Janeiro state governor, Cláudio Castro (PL), signed a decree that provides for the payment of a R$5,000 premium to police officers for each rifle seized. The rules, published on Monday (21/08) in the Official Gazette, provide for payment even in the event of seizure of weapons on days off by the police officer. The text does not explain how the police could act in such a performance outside working hours.
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The criteria defined by the governor also limit the award only to weapons in which expertise attests to the ability to produce shots. The award is part of an update of the benefits paid in the Integrated System of Goals for public security, which includes a reduction in violent lethality (index that includes homicides, death caused by state agents and robbery), street, vehicle, and cargo thefts. The award will be divided among the police officers responsible for the occurrence. Agents who are disciplined away from their duties are prevented from receiving payment.
Does Not Cover Investigative Work
The rule, created to encourage the removal of working weapons from the hands of criminals, does not provide for rewarding investigative work that locates parts that can be used to produce the weapon. This was the case with the material seized at the house of a friend of former PM Ronnie Lessa, accused of killing councilwoman Marielle Franco. At the time, the agents found material capable of making 117 rifles, but the weapons had not yet been assembled — that is, the police would not receive the bonus.
Records of Apprehensions
Since 2007, when the history series began with gun seizure numbers, there has not been a number as high as the current one, according to data from the Public Security Institute (ISP-RJ). The year is not over yet, and more rifles have already been seized than last year, registering an increase of 64.1%. In 2022, the police removed 223 rifles from the streets, while from January to 18 August, the record was 366 weapons of this type seized.
Deputy Takes a Stand Against It
State deputy Dani Monteiro (PSOL) presented to the Legislative Assembly of Rio de Janeiro (Alerj) a draft legislative decree to stop the award announced by Castro. According to Dani, the presentation of weapons seized in police operations should be treated as a protocol measure, that is, a mere obligation of the professionals involved. The deputy also recalls a similar measure adopted in the 1990s, when then state governor Marcello Alencar instituted the “faroeste bonus”, as the benefit became known. The result was a 200% increase in lethality between 1995 and 1998.
Analysis
Experts are divided on the new policy announced, while for some it is a result-based bonus that encourages police workers who take risks every day. In addition to correcting past mistakes, seized rifles were presented in fractions to obtain differentiated payments for each presentation. Others see in Governor Cláudio Castro’s decision positive points and concerns. On the positive side, the state declares that one of the most worrying things in terms of public security is weapons of war, not drugs. The government changes its strategy of saying that the problem is drugs and starts attacking with priority the presence of firearms, because that is what kills. The concern is the presence of confrontations in communities. This is because the weapons of war are in communities less favored by public policies, in the favelas. So that is where the police force goes to get this bonus. Which can lead to an increase in operations in favelas and in injuries and in deaths caused by stray bullets, in addition to other collateral damage. A survey carried out by the newspaper Folha de São Paulo, published in 2020, showed that at least 47% of the 550 seizures of rifles in 2019 by the police occurred in actions with deaths.
Source: Folha de São Paulo
