Gol accident: is no one to blame?
After handing down alternative sentences to the Legacy pilots, the same judge punishes an air traffic controller with a temporary suspension from work.
Last week, Federal Judge Murilo Mendes, from the Sinop court, 503 km from Cuiabá, sentenced the pilots of the Legacy jet, which collided with Gol flight 1907, to four years in prison and converted the sentence to community service. This Thursday, the same magistrate convicted one air traffic controller and acquitted the other in the case investigating responsibilities in the accident that killed 154 people in northern Mato Grosso. The accident between the Legacy jet and the Gol Boeing occurred in September 2006. The decision is still subject to appeal at the Regional Federal Court (TRF). Air traffic controller Lucivando Tibúrcio de Alencar was sentenced to three years and four months in prison under an open regime. The sentence was converted to community service and temporary suspension from practicing his profession. Controller Jomarcelo Fernandes dos Santos was acquitted of the accusation. In the Military Court, Jomarcelo was sentenced in October 2010 to one year and two months of detention for manslaughter (without intent).
Earlier this week, the same judge in Mato Grosso sentenced American pilots Joseph Lepore and Jan Paul Paladino, who were piloting the Legacy jet, to four years and four months in prison. However, the sentence was also converted to community service in the United States. Judging by the lenient sentences given the severity of the accident, no one will be seriously held responsible for the deaths of so many people.
Controladores
Sergeant Lucivando was working at Cindacta in Brasília on September 29, 2006, when the accident involving the two aircraft occurred.
In the ruling, the judge emphasizes that the crime was intentional, determining his temporary suspension from his position as controller. "Nothing indicates a history of negligence on Lucivando's part. The permanent loss of his position would be too severe a punishment for someone who made a mistake. For someone who committed an unintentional crime," the judge explained.
The judge from Mato Grosso also points out that the controller's sentence could be replaced by community service. The second controller, Jomarcelo Fernandes dos Santos, was acquitted of the charges.
Pilots
In addition to being barred from providing services in the U.S., the American pilots had their flight licenses suspended for the duration of their sentences. The decision displeased all parties. The pilots' defense, the federal prosecutor, and the lawyers for the victims' families promised to appeal the decision.
Military conviction
In the case of the Military Justice system, Sergeant Jomarcelo Fernandes dos Santos was sentenced in October 2010 to one year and two months of detention for manslaughter (when there is no intent to kill). The other four air traffic controllers – João Batista da Silva, Felipe Santos Reis, Lucivando Tibúrcio de Alencar (convicted this Thursday) and Leandro José Santos de Barros – were acquitted. They had been indicted by the Military Public Prosecutor's Office (MPM) for negligence and for failing to observe military safety regulations.