The legal action, proposed in 2022, accused the institutions of alleged violations of the rights of children and adolescents in their schools and hostels. The judge recognized that the documents presented by the defense disproved “the supposed condition of neediness of the institution’s students and their families.” Now the Court case is officially and formally extinguished.

Newsroom (27/07/2024 9:19am, Gaudium Press) On Tuesday, July 23, 2024, the State of São Paulo Court quashed a public civil action filed by the Public Defender’s Office of the State against the Educational Institute Heralds of the Gospel and the International Private Association of Pontifical Right Heralds of the Gospel.

The decision, handed down by Judge Cristina Ribeiro Leite Balbone Costa of the São Paulo Central Civil Court for Children and Youth, upheld the preliminary argument, of lack of active legitimacy of the Public Defender’s Office for the case. As a result, the magistrate dismissed the case entirely.

The legal action, proposed in 2022, accused the institutions of alleged violations of the rights of children and adolescents in their schools and hostels. The allegations included deprivation of family contact, isolation, standardization, and depersonalization of students.

The case gained significant media attention at the time, creating a negative exposure for the Catholic institution. However, throughout the legal process, it was proved that there was no material evidence for the case. The defense always maintained that the case was orchestrated by detractors of the institution.

The judge recognized that the documents presented by the defense disproved “the supposed condition of neediness of the institution’s students and their families,” thus disallowing the Public Defender’s Office’s involvement in the case.

It was proven that all the students’ families were represented in the proceedings by an association, in consultation with a recognized law firm. Additionally, the parents demonstrated awareness of the institution’s practices, according to the law, as well as their ability to act in defense of their own interests.

The outcome of this case recalls the ill-fated episode of Brazil’s Escola Base, which occurred in 1994 in São Paulo when the school’s owners were unjustly accused of sexually abusing minors. Certain media outlets amplified the accusation as certain, even in the face of many inconsistencies. The case became an example of the lack of journalistic ethics and a paradigm for study in journalism schools.

Just like in the Escola Base case, the Heralds of the Gospel suffered from negative media exposure and damage to their reputation. However, the judicial process allowed for the clarification of facts and the restoration of truth. Now the Court case is officially and formally extinguished.

Compiled by Raju Hasmukh