Brazil: judges at bail hearings are powerless to release jailed protesters
The judges who are conducting the custody hearings of the arrested protesters, due to the protests in Brazilian Three Powers headquarters, are not having the autonomy to decide whether to release the detainees.
The information was obtained exclusively by Revista Oeste, this Thursday, the 12th, through lawyer Samuel Magalhães, who defends some of the people detained by the Federal Police (PF).
“The magistrates only approve the arrest and send it to the Federal Supreme Court so that the Court can decide whether to release the person”, explained Magalhães.
“This goes completely against the Constitution and the Penal Code. At the custody hearing, the judge must have the autonomy to assess whether that person has the requirements to respond to the process in freedom. We are experiencing a legal uncertainty that we have never seen before in Brazil.”
At the preliminary hearing, which should have taken place within 24 hours of the arrest in flagrante delicto, the judge analyzes the legality of the detention.
According to the lawyer, the demonstrators detained by the PF in front of the Headquarters in Brasilia also participate in this procedure.
According to Magalhães, the custody hearing, which should apply to arrested protesters, works in two stages:
- the judge analyzes whether there is any illegality in the arrest;
- the magistrate assesses whether the accused has requirements to respond in freedom.
“As a rule, prison should be the exception,” noted the lawyer. “The judge can use several alternatives that differ from prison, but this is not being done.”
With information from Revista Oeste
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