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This article analyses the practices and knowledge mobilised by magistrates during the trial to determine the guilt of the defendant. The article highlights the presence of a strong presumption of guilt among magistrates, which is perceptible in the way the magistrates direct their questions and interpret retrospectively and selectively the information received. The data presented originates from doctoral research, during which there was the opportunity to attend 230 hearings over a six-month period at the Palacio de Justiça in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and to conduct interviews with 23 criminal judges.