‘Justiça’ by Manuela Dias

Crossing the street to meet her husband Maurício, in front of the theatre where she stars as dancer, Beatriz is struck by a hit-and-run driver. Beatriz survives the collision but is left tetraplegic. Unable to dance, Beatriz no longer wants to live, so she asks Maurício to help her end her life (it is implicitly understood that assisted dying is not a legal option in Brazil). After acquiring an unnamed drug from an acquaintance, Maurício tells Beatriz that, if it were up to him, he would never do such a thing. Beatriz records a message on Maurício’s phone, stating that the assisted death was her idea and that her husband is not a murderer; she adds that she admires those who are able to move on, but that she feels already dead. Merely 48h after the accident, Maurício injects the unnamed drug through Beatriz’s IV drip and she dies peacefully. Staggering through the hospital in the sequence, Maurício collapses crying and is dragged away by hospital security. Despite his intention and the exculpatory video message, Maurício is convicted of homicide for assisting in the death of Beatriz. This is the opening of a main storyline in Justiça, a 20-episode TV series that reignited the debate on assisted dying in Brazil. Written by Manuela Dias and directed by José Luiz Villamarim, Justiça was broadcast on TV and remains available through streaming on Globoplay. The series alternates among the stories of four people arrested on the same night – all of whom are sent to prison for 7 years, and who, when released, must deal with the consequences of their imprisonment. Though the stories start as independent plots, they eventually intertwine, revealing the complex web of causes and consequences of our actions and, ultimately, of the concept of justice.

When the episode featuring Beatriz’s death was released, it caused a social-media commotion among the Brazilian public, who questioned how ‘just’ it was to imprison Maurício for 7 years for assisting in the death of his spouse. The series-creator Manuela Dias said it was her intention to provoke reflection among viewers, placing a question mark at the end of every sentence and humanizing the concept of ‘justice’ – making it personal. In the polemic that ensued, the cast members shared various viewpoints regarding Beatriz’s death: Cauã Reymond, who plays Maurício, declared he was in favour of self-determination but that we should respect the laws, which we must discuss and, if necessary, change; Cássio Gabus Mendes, who plays a law professor in a different storyline of Justiça, said he was in favour of euthanasia in cases of great suffering, but that he also considered the side of health professionals who make an oath to fight for life; Marjorie Estiano, who plays Beatriz, finds her character’s decision hasty, only 48 hours after the accident, without enough time to explore other paths. Several reviewers point out the importance of the series in promoting debate on assisted dying in Brazil, highlighting that bills regulating euthanasia have been proposed – yet neglected by Congress – since 1996. Even if orthothanasia (i.e., not prolonging the death process) is currently authorized by the Brazilian Federal Council of Medicine for terminal cases (resolution 1.805 from 2006), euthanasia remains a crime, tantamount to homicide. One of the series’ most radical aspects is pointing to what traditional approaches to justice leave out. Interviewed about this topic, Edna Câmara, professor of Philosophy of Law at Unicuritiba, said that ‘Law, to some extent, is also entwined with fiction, because it pretends that conflicts end after being judged’. Justiça dramatizes exactly that afterlife – challenging us to consider what justice may look like after a convicted person rejoins society.