Supreme Court denies Brazil speaker's appeal for criminal case against him
The Brazilian Supreme Court denied the appeal filed by ousted Lower House speaker Eduardo Cunha against bringing a criminal case in which he was charged defendant in Operation Car Wash investigations
Yesterday (Jun. 1), the Supreme Court (STF) unanimously denied the appeal filed by ousted Lower House speaker Eduardo Cunha against bringing a criminal case in which he was charged defendant in Operation Car Wash investigations.
When adjourning the case, Justice Teori Zavascki, in charge of the action, considered that there is no inconsistency in the apellate decision (final text) of the sentence. To the justice, Cunha's defense intended only to reconsider a case, that had already been sentenced, which is not possible after the trial.
On the appeal, Cunha's attorneys say that the final text of the judgment is expressed in "obscurity, doubt and inconsistency" and appeal the justices to reject the complaint filed by the Office of the Prosecutor General (PGR).
According to the defense, the court decision had not been upheld by the bribery crime, described in the complaint against Cunha. In addition, the attorneys argued that the PGR mentioned facts from 2011, as if they had occurred in 2006 and 2007.
In March, a majority of Supreme Court justices, followed the vote of Justice Teori Zavascki, who is in charge of the case, and considered that there is enough evidence that Cunha received $5 million in bribes through drillship contracts in the government-controlled company Petrobras and ruled bringing a criminal case against him.
Translated by Amarílis Anchieta
Fonte: Supreme Court denies Brazil speaker's appeal for criminal case against him
