Rio Grande do Norte court upholds racial injury conviction

The Criminal Chamber of the Court of Justice of Rio Grande do Norte (TJRN) has unanimously upheld the conviction of a man for racial injury. The offense occurred in February 2022 within a messaging application group, where the defendant used repeated racist expressions to humiliate and degrade a victim.

The conviction was supported by the victim's police statements, witness testimonies from group members, and the defendant's own confession during the investigation. Although the victim passed away before testifying in court, the court ruled that the evidence was sufficient to prove the crime.

In the first instance, the defendant was sentenced to three years of imprisonment in an open regime, plus a fine and R$ 2,000 in moral damages. The prison sentence was replaced by two restrictive measures of rights. The court rejected the defense's argument that the offenses were not public because they occurred in a closed messaging group.