Brazil’s Supreme Court Suspends Judgment on Second Instance Imprisonment
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Federal Supreme Court (STF) Justice Ricardo Lewandowski voted yesterday, October 24th, against the validity of provisional enforcement of criminal sentences after they are affirmed by an appellate court, known as second instance imprisonment.
After four plenary sessions, , the vote count was 4 to 3 in favor of provisional enforcement. Following Lewandowski’s vote, the session was suspended and should resume on November 6th.
Justices Marco Aurélio and Rosa Weber also voted against. Justices Alexandre de Moraes, Edson Fachin, Luis Roberto Barroso and Luiz Fux voted in favor of second instance imprisonment. Four members of the STF have yet to vote.
Lewandowski, the last to vote in yesterday’s session, said the Constitution contains a bedrock clause that the enforcement of convictions by imprisonment can only occur after the sentence has become final, that is, after all appeals to higher courts have been exhausted.
“The jurisprudence of this Court has established, except for a short period of time, that the enforcement of a prison sentence before a final and unappealable decision, violates the principle of the presumption of innocence,” he said.
Source: Agência Brasil
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