MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency
Brazilian Supreme Court divided on overturning graft convictions of Lula da Silva
Supreme Court judges suspended its ruling with a 2-2 decision on the appeal by Lula's legal team alleging that Sergio Moro, was not impartial The Brazilian Supreme Court was divided on Tuesday on overturning graft convictions of ex-president Lula da Silva, which could definitively clear his name ahead of a possible 2022 presidential election if he decides to run.
A panel of Supreme Court judges suspended its ruling with a 2-2 decision on the appeal by Lula's legal team alleging that Sergio Moro, the former judge who sentenced him, was not impartial in overseeing investigations of the former president.
Judge Kassio Nunes Marques, who will cast the tie-breaking vote, asked to review the case, suspending judgment indefinitely. If he eventually rules in Lula's favor, it would cap a stunning reversal of fortunes for one of Brazil's most popular and divisive figures, whose political hopes appeared decimated by the corruption cases against him in recent years.
On Monday, Supreme Court Justice Edson Fachin annulled the criminal convictions against Lula by ruling that a court in the southern city of Curitiba, where Moro presided, had lacked the authority to try Lula on corruption charges.
That surprise ruling restored Lula's political rights, clearing the way for him to enter next year's presidential race. If he runs, Lula would immediately be the leading rival against far-right President Jair Bolsonaro, whose popularity has suffered in the face of a raging pandemic, rising inflation and stretched public finances.
A conviction blocked Lula's run for a third term in 2018, after he led Latin America's largest nation from 2003 to 2011.
Financial markets lurched on the prospect of a more polarized 2022 race. Brazil's currency slipped close to last May's all-time lows.
Monday's ruling, if upheld by the broader Supreme Court on appeal, would trigger Lula's retrial in federal courts in the capital Brasilia, leaving open the chance of another conviction blocking a 2022 candidacy.
However, if the court throws out the evidence gathered under Moro's instruction, it would effectively scrap the cases against Lula.
The precedent could also undo much of the so-called Car Wash corruption probe overseen by Moro, which led to the convictions of dozens of Brazil's political and business elite.
Top Comments
Disclaimer & comment rules-
-
-
Read all commentsChicureo
Mar 12th, 2021 - 04:39 pm +1Wise decision to get a driver to take you...Over the last 3 years, sold two of my cars 'n the third stays mostly parked in one of our spots in the garage...have to turn the engine over every 3 or 4 days. But today, with Uber, and the police on the lookout for drunk drivers (defined as even having sniffed alcohol - a bit extreme but nevertheless, that's the way it is), Uber is the solution....and many times, the price you pay for valet parking at the restaurant, is more expensive than Uber. Well worth it to enjoy yourself, drink to your heart's content, and not have to worry about the cops. Don’t suppose you went on the trek thru the vineyards, but spent most of the time in the Fuegos de Apalta….
Have you noticed – of course you have, it’s impossible not to – that the psycho (who was offended at being called what it is), just repeats the same nonsense over and over again ? The sign of a limited brain. The psycho’s posts are always about silly references to Brazil’s military ‘dictatorship’ (must be because it has no notion of what a real dictatorship looks like) …I mean, it’s high-time to let it go, it ended 35 years ago !
References to “sad sacks of shit” (must’ve used many brain-hours and burned quite a few of the remaining neurons to come up with that), but I don’t see how a sack of shit can be sad – smelly, yes , something the psycho is extremely familiar with; more quotes, more 'catch- phrases' that it thinks are smart, completely unable to appreciate good agricultural practices, far less understand the joy of being part of it, and unwarranted criticism of those who actually enjoy their lives (must be the deeply-embedded jealousy speaking from the basement).
On the upside, heard that up North, the STF's decision rgdng 9-fingers, made sales of Lulla-dolls triple, literally flying out of the shops - 'n the basement window ; the psycho likes them blown up ‘hard’, to the point of the caps shooting off the valve and the dolls flying off.
Chicureo
Mar 13th, 2021 - 01:54 pm +1Land redistribution, or “agrarian reform” as leftists like to call it, seems to be their solution to all evils; we had the same crap here in Brazil, sponsored initially by FHC, and of course, by 9-fingers, who used the movement behind it, the MST, politically.
While in theory it's very nice, first : the MST wanted already productive land, that which had been taken from zero and transformed into good farmland by its decades-old owners.
They invaded private farms, destroyed crops, machinery, demolished living quarters, well knowing they could not win, but if they couldn't, all would lose....great philosophy.
Second, when settlements were created/ they were given land, they complained it wasn't ready, prime farmland - they needed to work to transform it...then they complained they didn't have any farm equipment, and that they had to BUY seed ! Lazy buggers ! so they started selling off their plots of land, illegally, to those few who wanted to work the land....those who left, got together again and demanded more land...it became a way of life, get given land then sell it, and so on.
Meanwhile, highly favored by PT administrations who generously financed them (off the record) - without the slightest need to show results - millions were diverted to buying cars, luxury items, all with the purpose of furthering what had become a purely political movement, to serve as 9-finger's 'red' army'.
When the PT really f*cked things up (starting 2013), money ran out, the MST lost ground.
Brazil's big, individual landowners, have historically just taken the land, without paying for it, and maintaining big stretches for speculation ; this has nothing to do with the agribusiness, so, in these cases, where these individual land owners did not work the land (obtained illegally), I can agree that it should be redistributed...there's plenty of land, suitable once prepared, but the politicians have no interest in the issue, many of them being the irregular landowners.
Pugol-H, Chicureo
Mar 14th, 2021 - 07:37 pm +1Hi Pugol, suppose it's as good as it can be....
The city of SP has just entered a more serious phase of the semi-lockdown....many people, youngsters mainly, either ignorant or with a death wish, continue to frequent clandestine gatherings, drinking, dancing, drugging themselves, and without masks. After the crowds are dispersed by police, the authorities fine the owner of the venue, and that's it...they should confiscate the venue, arrest everyone for reckless behaviour, then hand out heavy fines.
Brazilian justice is too damn lenient, laws are full of looholes (there are laws that prohibit certain practises, and others that contradict them)....just the way the politicians engineered the system....so only poor people and those with no influence are condemned , serve time, while those with money, in practise, are literally, never punished.
Can imagine what Elisa Bravo Jaramillo went through, but that's what the indians did with whom invaded their territory....
Unfortunately we have to put up with Terry the Sh*tHill butting in all the time. He must think we pay attention to his psycho rants......Afaic, his rants are water off a duck's back, they contribute less than zilch.
The Sh*tHill , aka Skippy the virgin, is so bloody ridiculous that he insists on preaching to the converted....I mean WTF does he think he can tell you about Chile, or me
about Brazil, that we don't already know ? nevertheless, he surfs the internet, selects crap from unreliable sites or 3rd rate reports, then publishes their content as the gospel truth....and when we challenge his BS, according to his dicktionary we are 'liars', defined as: “anyone who challenges or does not agree with Terry Sh*tHill”....which must include most rational people.
He's an ignorant, despicable, jealous piece of crap, who finds ultimate pleasure in sexually assaulting his dolls....I wonder if Long Dong & the Lulla dolls actually feel the same pleasure when he goes down on them ?
Commenting for this story is now closed.
If you have a Facebook account, become a fan and comment on our Facebook Page!