BRASILIA (Reuters) – Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Carmen Lucia began reading her vote on Thursday in the final deliberations of the trial of former President Jair Bolsonaro, who is charged with plotting a coup to remain in power after he lost the 2022 election.
Two members of a five-judge panel have already voted to convict the ex-president and one has voted to acquit him.
If Lucia aligns with the votes of Justices Alexandre de Moraes and Flavio Dino on Tuesday, her vote could secure a majority to convict Bolsonaro and sentence him to prison.
On Wednesday, Justice Luiz Fux voted to acquit Bolsonaro and annul his trial over jurisdiction, breaking with peers and raising the odds of an appeal of this week’s verdict.
Despite the dissent from Fux, the high court still looks likely to convict Bolsonaro. Both Lucia and Justice Cristiano Zanin were appointed by leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who defeated Bolsonaro in the 2022 election.
Bolsonaro stands accused of participating in an armed criminal organization, attempting to violently abolish democracy, organizing a coup and damaging government property and protected cultural assets.
Lawyers for the former president have maintained his innocence on all counts and argued that his trial involved several procedural mistakes.
(Reporting by Ricardo Brito and Luciana Magalhaes; Writing by Andre Romani; Editing by Brad Haynes)
