IACHR takes to Inter-American Court of Human Rights case concerning Argentina about the killing by police officers of adolescent Adrián Brunettini

August 28, 2025

Washington, DC—The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) filed on August 1, 2025, an application before the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in Case 13,068, with regard to Argentina. This case concerns the killing of Adrián Hernando Brunettini, aged 16, by police officers, and the subsequent impunity around these events.

The relevant petition—filed before the IACHR in March 2003—says that Brunettini died in 1993, after being shot by a police officer while he was riding a motorcycle. According to the petitioning party, police officers staged the crime scene and omitted to conduct crucial procedures. This version of events was validated by the official report about what happened, which ruled out a clash between the adolescent and police officers. In 2006, one of the officers involved in this case was sentenced to 14 years in prison. The sentence was later reduced to 11 years, but he was released after just four years and there are no records that he might have served more time since then. The criminal case was closed in 2017. The family was granted financial compensation in a parallel civil law case brought against the Buenos Aires Provincial Police, but said it did not receive full payment.

In Admissibility and Merits Report 100/23, the IACHR noted that there was no controversy about the fact that Brunettini's death had been caused by a police officer, as confirmed by a domestic court conviction. The IACHR found serious irregularities in the relevant investigation, which included placing a gun next to Brunettini's body to stage a clash, the failure to conduct forensic examinations to establish whether the gun had been fired, and the manipulation of a witness report. The IACHR further found multiple elements to rule out a clash with police officers that might have justified the use of lethal force, and concluded that the State had not proved that the use of force in this case had been legitimate, necessary, or proportionate.

The IACHR determined that the investigation had not been serious, diligent, or timely. The IACHR noted that crucial procedures that should have been conducted immediately after the death of the adolescent—including adequate crime scene investigation, a necropsy, and suitable preservation of evidence—had not been documented. The IACHR further noted that police officers involved in Brunettini's killing had altered the crime scene and that the authorities had initially validated these officers' account of events. The IACHR further highlighted the authorities' refusal to conduct procedures requested by the petitioning party, and noted that there had been lengthy periods where no progress had been made in this case.

Concerning timeliness, the IACHR noted that criminal proceedings had taken almost 24 years, from 1993 until the case was closed in 2017, which entailed a violation of the right to a fair trial. Finally, the IACHR found that losing a son in these circumstances, compounded by the lack of access to truth and justice, had caused suffering and anxiety to Brunettini's family.

In this context, the IACHR found that the Argentine State was liable for violations of the rights held in Articles 4.1 (life), 5.1 (personal integrity), 8.1 (judicial guarantees), 19 (rights of the child), and 25.1 (judicial protection) of the American Convention on Human Rights, in keeping with the obligations held in Article 1.1 of the same instrument, to the detriment of all victims identified in the Admissibility and Merits Report.

The IACHR therefore asked the Inter-American Court of Human Rights to demand that the State take the following measures:

1. Provide comprehensive redress for all rights violations mentioned in the report, whether material or immaterial, taking into consideration the financial compensation that was granted to Brunettini's family in the past.
2. Take disciplinary, administrative, and legal action to investigate the rights violations mentioned in the report and punish whoever perpetrated them.
3. Take measures of non-recurrence, including police training about international standards concerning the use of force; accountability mechanisms for cases of police abuse; and investigative capacity-building for cases involving the use of lethal force by police officers.

The IACHR is a principal and autonomous body of the Organization of American States (OAS), whose mandate stems from the OAS Charter and the American Convention on Human Rights. The Inter-American Commission has the mandate to promote the observance and defense of human rights in the region and acts as an advisory body to the OAS on the matter. The IACHR is made up of seven independent members who are elected by the OAS General Assembly in their personal capacity, and do not represent their countries of origin or residence.

No. 172/25

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