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Judicial Decision Confirms Conviction of the City of São Paulo for Serious Accident at Municipal School, with Recognition of Failure in Supervision and Maintenance of Toy, Fixing Compensation for Moral and Aesthetic Damages and Lifetime Monthly Pension to the Victim.
The 1st Chamber of Public Law of the São Paulo Court of Justice upheld the conviction of the City of São Paulo to pay compensation to a child who had part of her finger amputated on a toy installed inside a municipal school.
The decision preserved the amount of R$ 100 thousand for moral and aesthetic damages and determined the payment of a lifetime monthly pension, set at 10% of the minimum wage, starting from the moment when the plaintiff turns 14 years old.
The case was judged on appeal against the ruling of the 7th Public Treasury Court of the Capital, signed by Judge Evandro Carlos de Oliveira.
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The panel considered that there was failure of public service by recognizing issues related to the maintenance, use, and supervision of the equipment at the time of the accident.
Accident on the Carousel Installed at the Municipal School
According to the records, the child was playing on a carousel installed at the school unit when the accident occurred, without the supervision of a staff member.
At a certain moment, her finger entered a cavity of the toy, which was spinning at high speed, and part of her right hand index finger was amputated.
The description of the episode, recorded in the case and reiterated in the judgment, was central to the analysis of the duty of surveillance and the adequacy of the equipment in an environment intended for children, especially during recreational activities in the school space.
Court Understanding on Public Power Responsibility
In the appeal, the City argued that the accident was unforeseeable and a result of risks inherent to children’s activities.
For the rapporteur, Judge Magalhães Coelho, this argument did not absolve the state of responsibility given the circumstances recognized in the case.
In voting to uphold the conviction, the magistrate pointed out that there was a failure in the provision of public service “in that there was no adequate maintenance, use, and supervision of the toy”.
“There is, therefore, no way to absolve the defendant of responsibility, as it is certain that there was no third-party act or exclusive fault of the victim capable of breaking the causal link.”
The Chamber understood, therefore, that the set of elements gathered in the case did not allow attributing the episode to an inevitable event or conduct by the victim that, by itself, interrupted the connection between the service provided and the damage suffered.
Value of Compensation and Criteria for Lifetime Pension
With the decision upheld, the City was ordered to pay R$ 100 thousand in compensation for moral and aesthetic damages.
The understanding reaffirmed that the damage described in the case, associated with a partial amputation, produces consequences that go beyond the specific episode, reaching physical and psychological aspects.
In addition to the compensation, the confirmed ruling determined the payment of a lifetime monthly pension starting when the plaintiff turns 14 years old, equivalent to 10% of the minimum wage.
The percentage was established in accordance with the terms defined by the 7th Public Treasury Court, and the maintenance by the Court preserved the same temporal framework provided in the first instance ruling.
In practice, the pension was fixed to be paid monthly and does not limit itself to a specific period, according to the determination of lifetime entitlement in the judicial decision.
The amount, being linked to the minimum wage, follows the reference adopted in the ruling, without the process, in the publicized part, detailing other calculation parameters beyond the percentage.
Unanimous Judgment and Progress of the Case
The judgment occurred with unanimous voting.
The panel also included Judges Luís Francisco Aguilar Cortez and Rubens Rihl, who agreed with the rapporteur’s vote.
The case is underway under the number 1069707-10.2022.8.26.0053.
In the record of public movements, there is a certification of res judicata and the initiation of incidents of compliance with the sentence, indicating the phase directed towards the execution of what was decided.
In cases of this type, compliance may involve administrative and judicial stages to effectuate the payment of convictions and the implementation of periodic obligations, such as pensions.
In this case, what the progress indicates, objectively, is that there was activity aimed at execution after the confirmation of the conviction.
Failure in School Supervision and Duty of Safety
Without delving into interpretations beyond what was decided, the judgment reaffirmed the public power’s obligation to offer adequate safety conditions in activities conducted within municipal schools, including during moments of recreation.
The Court highlighted, in the rapporteur’s vote, that responsibility was not absolved because no external element sufficient to break the causal link was found.
The case also demonstrates that, in judicial analysis, the discussion is not limited to the existence of the accident but involves the circumstances under which it occurred, such as the presence of supervision and the conditions of the equipment.
The decision recognized that these factors were decisive in characterizing failure in the provision of service.
What measures should schools and public administrations adopt to ensure effective supervision and continuous maintenance of toys and structures used daily by children?
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