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The formal accusation presented by the Attorney General’s Office (PGR) against former President Jair Bolsonaro (PL) and 33 others investigated for alleged participation in an attempted coup in 2022 will be analyzed by the First Class of the Supreme Federal Court (STF). The trial will be in charge of five ministers: Alexandre de Moraes, Cármen Lúcia, Luiz Fux, Cristiano Zanin and Flávio Dino.
It will be up to the group of magistrates to decide whether or not they accept the complaint filed by PGR. If the prosecution is accepted, the investigated will become defendants, starting the criminal instruction phase of the process, where evidence will be analyzed and witnesses will be heard.
Alexandre de Moraes and Bolsonaro | Adriano Machado/ Michel Filho/ Infoglobo
Bolsonaro’s defense has argued that the case should be tried by the STF plenary, allowing all 11 ministers to vote. However, since 2023, the Court has sent criminal actions for judgment in the classes, with the objective of accelerating the processes and reducing the workload of the plenary.
The lawyer of the former president, Paulo Amador Cunha Bueno, questions the impartiality of the trial, claiming that Alexandre de Moraes should not participate in the case because it is considered one of the victims of the alleged plot, which would have involved an attack on the minister. In addition, the defense points out that Cristiano Zanin, Lula’s former lawyer in Operation Lava Jato, and Flávio Dino, former Minister of Justice in the PT government, should also be prevented from acting in the trial.
Flávio Dino, Minister of the STF (Rosinei Coutinho/SCO/STF)
Bolsonaro made a comparison between his trial and Lula’s, criticizing the fact that his case was treated in the first class of the Supreme Court. He questioned the Supreme Court’s competence to judge former presidents and suggested that the process should occur in the first instance: “The forum is the first instance. Where was Lula judged? Wasn’t it in Curitiba? Is it in the constitution that former president has forum? It is not. What are you trying to do? Take me out of combat, ”he said.
If the defense allegations are not accepted, the trial will follow in the first class. If the complaint is accepted, the process phase of the process will begin, where additional evidence will be collected, new testimonials and elaborate expertise will be collected. At the end of this stage, the rapporteur of the case will schedule the date of the final judgment.
If there is a conviction, the Court will define the penalty according to the severity of the crimes attributed to the former president and the others involved.
