“In spite of Sister Dorothy's good work for the people of Para and the world, protecting the rain forest by encouraging sustainable farming techniques presented a threat to loggers, land speculators, and agribusiness concerns in the region. As a result, in the late 90s she was named to a "death list" created by the power brokers of the area.

Hired killings of human rights advocates, environmentalists, and farmers account for one-third of the deaths in the region each year. The goal of these calculated murders is to eliminate opposition to the clear-cutting and burning of the forest so that fields of soy beans can be planted, trees can be logged, and cattle can graze. Another goal of the killings is to eliminate those who empower and educate the peasants; and finally the killings are meant to intimidate the farmers and keep them ensnared in an endless cycle of debt, akin to slavery. Sister Dorothy became a prime target.

Sister Dorothy repeatedly asked the city, state and national government for protection for the people but she was always refused. Then on February 12, 2005, on a dirt road at the Boa Esperanca settlement in a rural area in Para, two hired gunmen fired six shots and killed Sister Dorothy. She was murdered because she had put into place programs that created self-sufficient communities of people committed to their own independence as well as to the sustenance of the rain forest.

As the gunmen approached Sister Dorothy, she took her Bible from her bag and began to read the Beatitudes: Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for justice... “