Multiple reports confirm that a majority of a five-justice panel of Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court has found former President Jair Bolsonaro guilty of trying to overturn the 2022 election through a coup plot. A majority of the panel has also found him guilty of being a member of an armed criminal organization. According to the associated press, Justices Alexandre de Moraes, Flávio Dino, and Cármen Lúcia formed the majority; Justice Luiz Fux voted to acquit, and one vote remains. Bolsonaro is officially guilty, but one justice disagreed and one vote is still out.
Prosecutors said the defendants committed five charges: trying to overthrow the government, being part of an armed criminal organization, trying to violently end the rule of law, and two charges of damaging state property during the January 8, 2023, riots in Brasília.
The court and prosecutors used a draft presidential decree and preparations to put pressure on the military to step in after Bolsonaro lost as evidence. Fux stated the court didn’t have the power to hear the case and that there wasn’t enough evidence. Most people disagreed with him. Bolsonaro’s lawyers have said they will appeal to the whole 11-justice court, and a sentencing session might happen as soon as Friday, September 12. The case comes after a 2023 ruling by Brazil’s electoral court that said Bolsonaro couldn’t run for office until 2030 because he hurt people’s faith in the country’s voting system.
Bolsonaro, who is under house arrest, says he did nothing wrong. His lawyers say they would ask the whole 11-member court to review the panel’s judgment once the sentence is determined. The most recent majority on the panel came about when Justice Cármen Lúcia joined Justices Alexandre de Moraes and Flávio Dino in voting to convict. Justice Luiz Fux voted to acquit. Soon, there will be a schedule for the sentence discussions.
(With inputs from AP news and Agencia Brasil)
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