Supreme Court Justice Kassio Nunes Marques has given the Attorney General's Office 20 days to respond to the criminal review request filed by the defense of former President Jair Bolsonaro (PL). This measure could directly impact the 27-year and 3-month prison sentence imposed on the former president in the coup plot case.
The decision was signed this Wednesday (27) and extends the deadline normally provided for in the Code of Criminal Procedure, which is ten days. According to Kassio, the case requires a more careful analysis as it involves a former President of the Republic and issues considered complex.
"Given the complexity of the case, which involves the trial of a former president of the Republic, I believe it is necessary to extend the deadline for the Federal Public Prosecutor's Office to present its arguments," the minister wrote in the order.
The criminal review was filed by Bolsonaro's defense on May 8th. In the document, which is about 90 pages long, the lawyers claim there was a "judicial error" and request the annulment of the conviction related to the attempted coup d'état after the 2022 elections.
Among the main arguments presented by the defense is the claim that Bolsonaro should have been judged by the full Supreme Court, and not by the Court's First Chamber. The lawyers also question the validity of the plea bargain of his former aide Mauro Cid, alleging that it was not voluntary.
Another point raised is the alleged lack of full access to the investigation's evidence. The defense also claims that there is no direct evidence of Bolsonaro's participation in the events of January 8, 2023, nor of his leadership of a coup d'état plan.
Bolsonaro was convicted last year by the First Panel of the Supreme Federal Court (STF), composed of Justices Alexandre de Moraes, Flávio Dino, Cristiano Zanin, and Cármen Lúcia.
Now, according to the Court's internal regulations, the criminal review will be analyzed by the Supreme Court's Second Panel, composed of Justices André Mendonça, Kassio Nunes Marques, Gilmar Mendes, Dias Toffoli, and Luiz Fux.
Following the opinion of the Attorney General's Office, the rapporteur may decide whether to open an investigation phase to gather new evidence before taking the case to a collegiate judgment.
Behind the scenes at the Supreme Federal Court (STF), the expectation is that the process will be slow. Members of the defense team estimate that the criminal review hearing could take between one and two years.
Jair Bolsonaro is currently under temporary house arrest for health reasons.
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