Deaths Mount in Rio's War on Crime

More Than 4,000 Have Died At Hands of Police in Violent Cycle

In Rio, many of the victims of police violence have been hapless bystanders. Others have undoubtedly been dope dealers who, human rights group say, never saw the inside of a jail cell because of rogue cops who sometimes act as judge, jury and firing squad.

"A lot of these killings are quasi-executions, with shots to the head and the heart," said Sandra Carvalho of Global Justice, a Brazilian human rights group that monitors the police...

Rio drew worldwide attention to the violence on its police force a dozen years ago when a group of hooded officers killed seven street children sleeping outside a downtown church. A month later, a police-run death squad massacred 21 civilians in a Rio slum. Only a few of the numerous officers charged in the two cases were convicted.

Yet Brazil's ruling elite, backed by a gaggle of "Nobel Peace Laureates", supported the recent gun ban referendum.