Last Friday (18), the Public Security Leadership Academy, an initiative of Leme, the Laboratory for Violence Reduction, in partnership with FGV EBAPE and Universidad EAFIT, held its closing event. The program aims to train a new generation of leaders capable of implementing public policies informed by data and scientific evidence.

At the program’s closing event, participants presented nine proposals to address one of the main public security challenges in Rio de Janeiro: territorial control by criminal groups. These proposals were developed over the six months of training offered by the program, which included three courses at Fundação Getulio Vargas and an international immersion at Universidad EAFIT in Medellín.

One of the program’s innovations that enabled the development of these proposals was bringing together in the same room institutions that address the same problems but do not always have the opportunity to engage in dialogue, exchange experiences, and gain a closer understanding of each other’s realities. Throughout the program, representatives from the Civil Police, Military Police, Penal Police, Public Prosecutor’s Office, and Court of Justice worked together, engaging in continuous dialogue and contributing to the development of the proposals.

Program overview

From March to September, the program’s 38 participants completed 120 hours of training and took part in a one-week international immersion. The activities at FGV EBAPE were organized into three courses: Evidence-Informed Public Security, taught by Professor Joana Monteiro, Leme’s Director and Co-Founder and a professor at FGV EBAPE; Understanding and Addressing Organized Crime in Latin America, taught by Professor Spencer Chainey of University College London (UCL); and Results-Based Governance, taught by Professor Flávia Donadelli of FGV EBAPE.

Following the training at FGV EBAPE, participants took part in a one-week international immersion in Medellín, Colombia. Throughout the experience, participants engaged with researchers and experts. The program combined classes and discussions with visits to institutions working in the areas of security, investigation, and justice.

Development of applied projects

As the final stage of the course, participants were invited to develop a public policy project focused on a specific problem in the State of Rio de Janeiro. Based on the discussions held throughout the program, the cohort identified territorial control exercised by criminal groups as the central problem to be addressed.

Participants identified the different causes associated with the persistence of this problem and then divided into groups to develop proposals aimed at strengthening the state’s capacity to restore the monopoly on the legitimate use of force in territories controlled by criminal groups. The final projects are proposals for complementary interventions that seek to address this problem in a coordinated manner.

The projects were developed through follow-up meetings with the Leme team, seminars with the entire cohort to discuss the relationships and complementarities between the proposals, and guidance from experts on the topics addressed by each project. The groups also received support from research assistants in gathering data and reviewing the literature.

Program closing and next steps

At the program’s closing event, each group presented its proposal in a 10-minute pitch. The presentations were followed by question-and-answer sessions and discussions with experts, allowing participants to further develop the proposed interventions and ensure their feasibility.

The conclusion of the program marks the beginning of a new stage, in which participants will continue to work on improving the proposals developed and building pathways toward their implementation.

The projects developed by program participants are listed below, and the proposal booklet will soon be available on the Leme website:

RETOMAR: Territorial Stabilization Network and Operations to Maintain Recovered Areas

Participants: Augusto Lago (PCERJ), Augusto Valentim (PMERJ), Marcelo Corbage (PMERJ), Tatiana Lima (PMERJ), and Victor Miceli (MPRJ).

ANTICAPTURA: CIAF Restructuring Program

Participants: Claudia Moraes (PMERJ), Lilian Ferreira (PMERJ), Michel Zoucas (MPRJ), and Sergio Sahione (PCERJ).

MIRA: Integrated Model for Firearms and Ammunition Control and Tracking

Participants: Bárbara Lomba (PCERJ), Reinaldo Lomba (MPRJ), Rodrigo Jeremias Passos (PMERJ), and Thiago Portes (TJRJ).

NEXUS: Center for the Study of Criminal Market Exploitation

Participants: Bruno Gangoni (MPRJ), Glaucio Santos (PCERJ), Rodrigo Duton (PMERJ), Thaianne Moraes (PCERJ), and Thiago Bezerra (PCERJ).

Unified Electronic System for the Processing of Evidence and Digital Forensics

Participants: Alessandra Roidis (TJRJ), Roberta Laplace (MPRJ), Rômulo Assis (PCERJ), and Thiago de Albuquerque (PMERJ).

PIVOT 360: Integrity, Professional Development, and Institutional Transformation Program

Participants: Bianca Ferreira (PMERJ), Cláudia Turner (MPRJ), Leonardo Hirakawa (PMERJ), and Marcelo Machado (PCERJ).

Protected Reintegration System

Participants: Ana Faulhaber (SEPPEN), Andreia Campos (PMERJ), Felipe Santoro (PCERJ), and Leonardo Franceschin (SEPPEN).

Selective IMEI Blocking and Criminal Prosecution of Illicit Communication in Prison Facilities

Participants: Daniel Rosa (PCERJ), Fernanda Bahia (MPRJ), Luiz Otávio Odawara (PMERJ), and Newton Nascimento (SEPPEN).

Risk Assessment and Intervention System for Adolescents in Conflict with the Law

Participants: Juliana Benevides (TJRJ), Julio Veras (PMERJ), Pricilla Azevedo (PMERJ), and Vanessa Cavalieri (TJRJ).

Participants conclude the program with the conviction that it is possible to build pathways to address territorial control exercised by criminal groups in Rio de Janeiro.