Dino defends stricter penalties in corruption cases involving the Judiciary

The Minister of the Federal Supreme Court (STF) Flávio Dino defended, in an article published this Sunday (26) in Correio Braziliense, a review of the Penal Code regarding crimes in the Justice system, such as corruption, proposing higher penalties, the need for specific and rapid rules for dismissal and loss of office, and the need for criminal liability for practices that aim to impede “the proper functioning of Justice”.

In the article, the minister mentions the positions of “judges, prosecutors, lawyers (public and private), defenders, prosecutors, advisors, employees of the Justice system in general” as examples that deserve specific legal treatment, arguing that this “is not about punitive illusion, but about using instruments proportional to the gravity of the situation, the relevance of the legal good and the conditions specific to legal professionals, insofar as it is clearly reprehensible for a knowledgeable person and guardian of legality to betray their toga or gown”.

It also mentions that since 1993 – when he joined the federal judiciary in a public examination – until now, the number of cases of corruption in the justice system has increased, cases have become more serious, and there has been an increase in the display of wealth and power by those who commit acts of administrative improbity.

The minister considers that control bodies, such as the National Council of Justice (CNJ), and normative acts that establish ethical principles for careers in the Justice system “remain important”, but are still insufficient in combating corruption.

Thus, increased penalties are defended in cases of “embezzlement, concussion, passive corruption, malfeasance, influence peddling and active corruption when committed within the scope of the Justice System”.

In the case of committing a crime against the Administration of Justice, Dino argues that receipt of the complaint should require immediate removal from office of the magistrate and members of the Public Prosecutor’s Office, the Public Attorney’s Office, the Public Defender’s Office and the advisors. “A final conviction, regardless of the length of the custodial sentence imposed by the judge, must result in automatic loss of office.”

The “receipt of a complaint against a lawyer for committing a crime against the Justice system must lead to the immediate suspension of registration with the Brazilian Bar Association and the final and unappealable conviction must imply definitive cancellation of said registration”, he adds.