Jairinho's defense seeks judge's removal in Henry Borel murder case

The legal team defending Jairo Souza Santos Júnior—known as Dr. Jairinho, a former city councilman now imprisoned on charges of torturing and murdering his four-year-old stepson Henry Borel—has filed a motion seeking the removal of Judge Elizabeth Machado Louro from the case. The defense argues that the judge has compromised her impartiality in ways that undermine the defendant's right to a fair trial.

The motion, filed by attorney Cláudio Delledone Júnior, points to a February 9 hearing as a turning point. On that date, the judge met with supporters of Leniel Borel, Henry's father, according to the defense. Among those present, the defense claims, was Sônia de Fátima Moura, the mother of Eliza Samúdio, a woman killed by goalkeeper Bruno Fernandes in a separate, high-profile case. The defense submitted social media photographs showing Moura alongside the judge, one tagged with "Justice for Henry." The implication is clear: the judge was seen socializing with the victim's family advocates, a breach of the neutral distance a magistrate must maintain.

But the motion goes further. During that same February 9 hearing, the defense argues, Judge Louro made rulings that favored the prosecution before the evidence was complete. The defense had requested a postponement, noting that expert reports remained incomplete and had not been fully entered into the case file. Rather than grant the delay, the judge ruled on the materiality of the crime—essentially deciding that the act itself had been established—and announced she would not hear from any expert witnesses. This decision, the defense contends, stripped them of their constitutional right to mount a full defense and cross-examine evidence through their own specialists. The defense team includes forensic linguists analyzing media recordings, crime scene experts, and medical examiners, all of whom would be barred from testifying.

The judge's conduct extends beyond the courtroom. In December, she attended the launch of a book about the Henry Borel case written by journalist Paolla Serra. The defense views this as inappropriate engagement with the very narrative shaping public perception of the trial. More damaging still are statements the judge made to the press after the hearing. She spoke of seeing her own three-year-old grandson jumping on a bed and being reminded of Henry. The defense interprets this as evidence of emotional prejudgment—that the judge has already decided the defendant's guilt based on maternal instinct rather than evidence.

In the motion, Delledone Júnior wrote that the judge's conduct reveals "a clear predisposition" to convict the defendant, despite the case being incomplete and still in preliminary phases. He argues there is "clear incongruence" in her actions, demonstrating partiality and rendering her unfit to preside over the case. Flávia Froes, another member of Jairinho's defense team, emphasized in response that they are conducting a thorough investigation with multiple expert witnesses—medical examiners, forensic linguists, crime scene analysts—all working to test the prosecution's accusations against the actual evidence. She stressed that they remain in the investigative phase, where the burden is on the state to prove both the crime and the defendant's guilt.

The case itself carries the weight of a tragedy that shocked Rio de Janeiro. Henry Borel died in March of the previous year. Jairinho was arrested in April and held in preventive detention. In December, the city council voted unanimously to strip him of his mandate. Now, as the trial proceeds, the defense is asking whether the judge presiding over it can fairly weigh the evidence at all.