The Application of Criminal Procedural Law in the Province of Espírito Santo (1830–1871) from a Gender Perspective.
Name: GABRIELA OTONI BAPTISTA
Publication date: 13/05/2025
Examining board:
Name |
Role |
|---|---|
| ADRIANA PEREIRA CAMPOS | Presidente |
| JOÃO PAULO MANSUR | Examinador Externo |
| VALESCA RAIZER BORGES MOSCHEN | Examinador Interno |
Summary: This research analyzes the application of Criminal Procedure Law in the Province of EspíritoSanto between 1830 and 1871, through a gender perspective. Digitized criminal case filesavailable at the Public State Archive of Espírito Santo (APEES) were used as primary sources.These documents were selected based on the belief that they allow for a detailed analysis ofcases involving women as either victims or defendants. The central objective was to understandthe context in which the Criminal Code (1830) and the Code of Criminal Procedure (1832) wereenacted and to examine the extent to which patriarchal social values may have influencedjudicial decisions and the application of the norms established by these new legal instruments.Furthermore, the study sought to investigate whether, after a long period under the severePortuguese Ordenações, there was room in 19th-century Brazil for legislation of a more liberalnature. To this end, it was analyzed how, in the midst of numerous innovations and changesduring a period marked by legislative effervescence, criminal procedure law was shaped. Theresearch revealed that the liberal enthusiasm surrounding the legal reforms introduced by the19th-century codes — formally breaking with the rigidity of the Ordenações Filipinas andpromoting procedural guarantees more aligned with social aspirations — was not enough toconsolidate a true rupture with conservative social and moral values. Consequently, areactionary movement soon prompted significant reforms to the procedural criminalframework. Within this context, gender inequalities also became evident, particularly in the lackof space afforded to women within criminal proceedings, the harsher moral judgment imposedupon them, and their subjugation in cases where they acted as perpetrators of violence. It isconcluded that the history of women in the 19th-century Espírito Santo criminal justice systemis a silent one, yet undeniably present—whether in the passive or active role within violentscenarios.
