The minister of the (Supreme Federal Court) defended, in an article in the newspaper Correio Braziliense (26), higher penalties for crimes of corruption, embezzlement and malfeasance committed by members of the Justice system.
In the text, entitled Dino, he states that the current mechanisms of ethical and moral control of judges, prosecutors, lawyers, defenders, prosecutors and civil servants “have proven to be insufficient” and proposes the revision of the chapter of the Penal Code on crimes against the administration of Justice.
The proposal presented by the minister has three points. The first provides for increased penalties for embezzlement, concussion, passive corruption, malfeasance, influence peddling and active corruption when crimes are committed within the scope of the Justice system.
The second deals with removal and loss of position. For Dino, receiving the complaint should result in the immediate removal of magistrates and members of the Public Ministry, public law, the Public Defender’s Office and advisors. A definitive conviction would result in automatic loss of office, regardless of the length of sentence.
The same logic, writes the minister, should apply to lawyers: immediate suspension of registration with the (Brazilian Bar Association) upon receipt of the complaint and definitive cancellation after a final conviction. Dino states that “there is no sale of judicial decisions if there is no buyer”.
The third point is the criminal classification of actions that aim to prevent, embarrass or retaliate in the progress of processes and investigations, “regardless of whether they are investigations against organized crime.”
Dino states that the proposal does not constitute a “punitive illusion” and says it is about “using instruments proportional to the gravity of the situation”. The minister also writes that it is “evidently reprehensible for an expert and guardian of legality to betray his toga or gown”.
The article in Correio Braziliense details one of the axes suggested by the minister in a text on the ICL Notícias website on Monday (20). The text is released amid the crisis involving the case, which affected STF ministers.
The main examples are , whose wife, Viviane Barci, leads a law firm that ; and, which was, through a family company, an investment fund linked to former banker Daniel Vorcaro, who owned Master.
Dino is part of a group of magistrates —alongside , and — who defend a comprehensive reform of the Judiciary, in contrast to the president of the court, , who prioritizes the approval of a code of conduct for ministers.
