MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Bolsonaro 2-0 down after three votes

It is not the STF's role to make political judgments, Fux argued

Brazilian Supreme Federal Court (STF) Justice Luiz Fux claimed on Wednesday morning that the plenum of the country's highest tribunal and not just a five-judge panel should have pronounced itself on the case against former President Jair Bolsonaro and his allies for the alleged Jan. 8, 2023, attempted coup d'état.

 With this opinion and after three votes, the score is 2-0 in favor of convicting all defendants given the thumbs down cast on Tuesday by case rapporteur Alexandre De Moraes in the morning and Flávio Dino in the afternoon.

Fux insisted it was not the STF's role to make political judgments, but to act with caution and responsibility when deciding what is legal from a criminal point of view.

“It is not the role of the Federal Supreme Court to make political judgments about what is good or bad, convenient or inconvenient, appropriate or inappropriate. It is the role of this court to affirm what is constitutional or unconstitutional, legal or illegal,” said Fux.

The minister added that “this is a mission that requires objectivity, technical rigor, and interpretive minimalism. This is in order to avoid confusing the role of the judge with that of the political agent.”

“With the same caution and responsibility that guide constitutional jurisdiction, the Judiciary must also exercise its role in the same manner in the criminal sphere,” said Fux.

The First Panel of the STF resumed on Wednesday the trial of a coup plot that allegedly sought to keep Bolsonaro in power even after his defeat in the 2022 elections.

On Tuesday afternoon, Dino detailed the participation of all the defendants and expressed his support for the conviction of all of them. In his view, there were executory acts to carry out the coup attempt.

Dino said he would propose heavier sentences for former President Jair Bolsonaro and General Walter Braga Netto, as he believed they had played a leading role in the process. However, he would vote for lighter sentences for former ABIN director Alexandre Ramagem and Generals Augusto Heleno and Paulo Sérgio.

The trial began last week, when the defense teams and Attorney General Paulo Gonet were heard.

After Fux, Justices Cármen Lúcia and Cristiano Zanin were to vote. If convicted, the defendants face up to 30 years in prison. (Source: Agencia Brasil)