The Senate plenary approved this Wednesday (17) a bill that reduces the sentences of those convicted of the January 8 attacks and benefits former President Jair Bolsonaro (PL).
The text was approved with an amendment from senator and former judge Sergio Moro (União Brasil-PR) that limits the scope to crimes against the democratic rule of law – a change reflected only in the wording.
The proposal having already been adopted by the Chamber of Deputies, it will now be submitted for presidential approval. Lula (PT) is expected to fully veto, as stated by the Leaf.
Understand in four points what the Senate approved, what the House text was, what the changes were, what the sentence could be for Bolsonaro and the other convicts and what the next steps are.
What did the Senate approve?
The proposal indicates that sanctions for the crimes of coup d’état and violent abolition of the democratic rule of law should not be applied cumulatively when inserted in the same context.
In this case, the text provides as an alternative that the more serious penalty of the two must be applied (or, if they are equal, only one), increasing the penalty from one sixth to one half.
The text also provides for a penalty reduction of one to two thirds for the crimes of attempted coup d’état or abolition when they were committed in a crowd.
In addition, it sets the shortest possible time to serve the regime’s progression sentence for these crimes, at one sixth, regardless of recidivism or the use of violence or serious threats.
There were 48 votes for, 25 against and 1 abstention.
What did the House approve?
The substitute approved by the House provided that those convicted of crimes against life and property, involving the use of violence or serious threats, must serve at least 25% of their sentence to access the regime – or 30% in the event of a repeat offense.
As shown LeafThis text would accelerate the progression of the regime for those convicted of other crimes not on this list, such as coercion during the process and arson.
MPs approved the project on December 10 with 291 votes in favor. There were 148 opponents, with one abstention.
The proposal was an alternative to the original draft, which granted amnesty to those involved in January 8 and the coup plot. This change is the result of an agreement between the leadership of the Chamber and the STF (Federal Supreme Court).
What were the changes?
Senators adopted an amendment proposed by Moro to limit the reduction of sentences only to crimes against the rule of law, for which those involved in January 8 were convicted.
The change was considered a technical amendment and not a substantive one, which in the latter case would mean that the bill would have to be sent back for further analysis by the House. The proposal was therefore directly sanctioned.
How should Lula position himself?
The PT member declared this Thursday (18) that he would veto the project. “I said that the people who committed this crime will have to pay for the acts committed against this country.”
The President of the Republic can veto all or part of a project, but members of Congress can reject this veto. In this case, the law is promulgated without necessarily the agreement of the president.
To reject the veto, an absolute majority of the votes of deputies and senators is required, i.e. 257 votes of deputies and 41 votes of senators, counted separately.
The debate must still return to the Supreme Court, with the possibility of challenging the approved question. The court must also interpret how any legislation applies to sanctions already set.
What is the impact on feathers?
The proposal would result in reductions in both the total sentences and the minimum length of secure detention for those convicted of the coup plot and January 8. Bolsonaro would be one of the most beneficiaries.
The proposal could reduce the length of time the former president spends in a closed regime from the current range of 6 to 8 years to something between 2 years and 4 months and 4 years and 2 months, depending on interpretation.
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