MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Brazil: Senate passes bill slashing sentences for Jan 8 convicts

Former President Bolsonaro could be eligible for parole or house arrest way sooner

In a decisive 48-25 vote on Wednesday, the Brazilian Senate approved the controversial “Dosimetry Bill” (PL 2162/2023), a measure that drastically reduces prison sentences for those convicted in the January 8, 2023, riots and the alleged coup plot.

 The bill, which was fast-tracked following a political maneuver in the Constitution and Justice Committee (CCJ), now heads to President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. While a presidential veto is widely expected, opposition leaders in Congress are already signaling their intent to overturn it.

The legislation directly impacts former President Jair Bolsonaro, who is currently serving time at the Federal Police headquarters in Brasília. Under current laws, Bolsonaro’s total sentence of 27 years and three months is projected to drop to 20 years.

More significantly, the time he must spend in a “closed regime” before becoming eligible for semi-open or open detention could fall from nearly seven years to just two years and four months.

The bill’s passage follows a tense standoff in the CCJ. Initial versions of the text faced failure due to “loopholes” that might have accidentally benefited those convicted of corruption or sexual harassment.

To save the initiative, Senator Sérgio Moro introduced a “drafting amendment” that strictly limited the sentence reductions to crimes committed in the context of the January 8 events. By categorizing this as a “drafting” change rather than a “merit” change, the Senate avoided having to send the bill back to the Lower House.

Senator Flávio Bolsonaro hailed the move on social media, claiming his father “sacrificed himself” to ensure hundreds of “wronged” citizens could resume their lives. He framed the bill as the only path toward “national pacification.”

On the other hand, pro-Lula senators slammed the law as “casuistic,” a legal term for a law created specifically to benefit a person or group. They argued it undermines the rule of law by granting privileges to those who actively sought to dismantle the country's democracy.

In this scenario, Lula has remained cautious, stating he would review the final text before acting. If he issues a veto, the battle will return to the congressional floor, where a simple majority in a joint session can override the President’s decision.