São Paulo. – The president of the Brazilian Supreme Court, Luís Roberto Barroso, guaranteed this Friday an “impartial” trial and “without any type of interference, from wherever it comes,” to those prosecuted for attempted coup, including former President Jair Bolsonaro.
“All defendants will be judged based on the evidence produced, without any type of interference, wherever it comes from”, stated the head of the high court when giving a speech after the return from the judicial recess.
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Barroso emphatically defended the “impartiality” and “independence” of the Supreme Court, following the sanctions imposed by the United States government in retaliation for the process faced by Bolsonaro, accused of leading a coup plot to remain in power, after losing the 2022 elections.
The administration of President Donald Trump sees a “political” motivation in the cause and, based on this, revoked, on July 18, the visa of eight of the eleven magistrates of the Brazilian court and last Wednesday framed Alexandre De Moraes, instructor of the cases against Bolsonaro, in the Magnitsky Act.
That law authorizes the U.S. Government to sanction foreign citizens involved in acts of corruption or human rights violations. For practical purposes, De Moraes’s possible assets and properties on U.S. soil are frozen.
Barroso made a fiery defense of De Moraes’ actions, to whom he acknowledged his “dedication, courage and high personal costs” in conducting the investigations and prosecuting those related to the coup attempt.
“Not everyone understands the risks the country ran and the importance of firm and rigorous action, but always within due legal process,” praised the president of the country’s highest judicial body.
The case against Bolsonaro is being processed in the First Chamber of the Supreme Court and is motivated by a complaint from the Prosecutor’s Office, which found indications that the far-right leader was “the main orchestrator” of a plot to prevent the inauguration of his successor, the progressive Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
The oral trial is expected to be held between September and October. Bolsonaro faces a possible sentence of between 12 to 40 years in prison.
Barroso assured that the process is carried out with “transparency” through “public sessions, accompanied by the lawyers of the accused, the press and society”.
