Breaking from colleagues, judge votes for annulment in Bolsonaro trial

Justice Luiz Fux insists the tribunal has nary jurisdiction to determine if the erstwhile president is blameworthy of plotting a coup.

Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Luiz Fux has called for the annulment of the case against erstwhile President Jair Bolsonaro owed to what helium called an “absolute deficiency of jurisdiction” for the five-judge sheet proceeding the case.

His ballot connected Wednesday is the 3rd of 5 to beryllium formed this week, arsenic judges deliberate connected the charges facing the erstwhile president, who stands accused of plotting a coup to stay successful powerfulness aft losing the 2022 election.

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The precocious tribunal inactive seems likely to convict Bolsonaro: Two judges person already voted to convict, and the remaining 2 were appointed by leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who defeated Bolsonaro.

The erstwhile president stands accused of taking portion successful an equipped transgression organisation, attempting to violently abolish democracy, organising a coup, and damaging authorities spot and protected taste assets.

His lawyers person maintained his innocence connected each counts.

Fux argued connected Wednesday successful the trial’s last deliberations that the lawsuit should person been heard by little courts because Bolsonaro had near office.

“I ballot … that the Supreme Court has nary jurisdiction to justice this lawsuit due to the fact that the defendants had already mislaid their [political] positions,” Fux said.

Once involved, helium added, the afloat Supreme Court should person handled the proceedings alternatively than the five-judge panel, due to the fact that it involves crimes committed while Bolsonaro was president.

Fux besides said the defence was not fixed capable clip to hole their case, noting that the probe generated astir 70 terabytes of documents, which helium called a “tsunami of data” and “document dumping”.

“I’m not an adept successful this area, but the measurement reached 70 terabytes — I couldn’t judge it, due to the fact that that’s billions of pages. Yet it was lone connected April 30, 2025, that a determination was issued granting entree to the media and materials seized during the investigative phase,” helium said.

If recovered guilty, the far-right, 70-year-old Bolsonaro faces up to 43 years successful prison.

Seven co-defendants, including ex-ministers and service generals, look akin sentences.

Yesterday, erstwhile Justice Alexandre de Moraes formed his ballot successful favour of conviction, helium noted that determination was excessive grounds of plans to assassinate existent President Lula, citing a document found astatine authorities headquarters.

The lawsuit has drawn wide attraction successful Brazil, wherever tens of thousands of Bolsonaro supporters took to the streets connected Sunday up of the verdict.

Such protests person raised concerns astir the implications of a imaginable blameworthy verdict.

After Bolsonaro mislaid the election, his supporters stormed key authorities buildings connected January 8, 2023, seeking to forestall Lula from taking office.

The onslaught caused millions of dollars successful damage, and dozens of instrumentality enforcement officers and protesters were injured.

Bolsonaro’s supporters person called connected United States President Donald Trump – a adjacent state of the Brazilian erstwhile person – to intervene successful the case.

Trump has denounced the proceedings arsenic a “witch hunt” and levied sanctions against Moraes, arsenic good arsenic steep tariffs connected Brazilian goods.