Brazilian justice authorized Friday, November 8, the release of former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, said Lula, incarcerated since April 2018, according to a judicial document consulted by AFP and Reuters.
This decision was made possible by a ruling of the Brazilian Supreme Court on Thursday, which put an end to the mandatory imprisonment of convicts before the exhaustion of all their appeals.
The former leader of the Workers' Party (PT) has been serving an eight-year, ten-month sentence since last year for accepting bribes in exchange for government contracts.
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The decision of the eleven judges of the Supreme Court, approved by six votes against five, buries a case law established three years ago and which contributed to the success of the anti-corruption investigation "Express wash" ("Lava Jato" ).
The survey focuses on construction companies that bribed political leaders and former national executives in exchange for contracts with the national oil company Petroleo Brasileiro (Petrobras) and other companies. .
Court-ordered releases on a case-by-case basis
The prospect of being jailed immediately after losing a first appeal trial encouraged the suspects to negotiate plea bargain agreements with prosecutors by providing them with information as part of the anti-corruption investigation.
The president of the Supreme Court, Jose Antonio Dias Toffoli, whose voice was decisive, said that the releases would not be automatic but decided by the courts on a case by case basis.
>> Read: Brazilian justice paves the way for the release of former President Lula
Judge Sergio Moro, who led the investigation "Lava Jato" before becoming Minister of Justice of the government of Jair Bolsonaro, warned before the decision of the Supreme Court that to reconsider this interpretation of the penal code would be a great setback the fight against corruption.
The prosecutors of "Lava Jato" lamented a decision that would complicate their task and promote impunity because of the "excessive" appeal procedures of the Brazilian judicial system.
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The Workers Party, from which Lula came, welcomed the Supreme Court ruling. President Gleisi Hoffmann described it as "a very important step towards strengthening democracy and the Constitution at a time when they are threatened by a far-right government".
According to the National Council of Justice, nearly 4,900 people could potentially benefit from this judgment. The Brazilian Bar argued that mandatory prison violates the Constitution by failing to respect the accused's presumption of innocence throughout the appeal process.
With AFP and Reuters