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Brazil's top court OKs retrials in landmark corruption case
Source: Reuters
Brazil's top court OKs retrials in landmark corruption case
By Anthony Boadle
BRASILIA | Wed Sep 18, 2013 6:53pm EDT
(Reuters) - Brazil's top court voted narrowly on Wednesday to allow retrials in the country's biggest-ever political corruption case, a decision seen by many as a major setback for efforts to hold Brazilian officials accountable for wrongdoing.
The ruling could save Jose Dirceu, the political leader in the so-called "mensalão" or monthly payment scandal, from going to prison. Dirceu was chief of staff to former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva when a scheme to pay legislators a regular allowance in exchange for support was uncovered in 2005.
On Wednesday, nine months after it convicted 25 people in what was considered a landmark ruling in a country notorious for corruption, the Supreme Court voted 6-5 to allow a retrial on charges for which defendants received at least four votes for acquittal. The convictions were for crimes including corruption, racketeering and money laundering.
The trial, years in the making, was the first time in Brazil that the Supreme Court had convicted leading politicians for corruption. Wednesday's ruling will undermine the credibility the court gained in the eyes of Brazilians as the only institution committed to ending the impunity enjoyed by Brazil's ruling class, long seen as venal and self-interested.
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By Anthony Boadle
BRASILIA | Wed Sep 18, 2013 6:53pm EDT
(Reuters) - Brazil's top court voted narrowly on Wednesday to allow retrials in the country's biggest-ever political corruption case, a decision seen by many as a major setback for efforts to hold Brazilian officials accountable for wrongdoing.
The ruling could save Jose Dirceu, the political leader in the so-called "mensalão" or monthly payment scandal, from going to prison. Dirceu was chief of staff to former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva when a scheme to pay legislators a regular allowance in exchange for support was uncovered in 2005.
On Wednesday, nine months after it convicted 25 people in what was considered a landmark ruling in a country notorious for corruption, the Supreme Court voted 6-5 to allow a retrial on charges for which defendants received at least four votes for acquittal. The convictions were for crimes including corruption, racketeering and money laundering.
The trial, years in the making, was the first time in Brazil that the Supreme Court had convicted leading politicians for corruption. Wednesday's ruling will undermine the credibility the court gained in the eyes of Brazilians as the only institution committed to ending the impunity enjoyed by Brazil's ruling class, long seen as venal and self-interested.
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Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/09/18/us-brazil-corruption-idUSBRE98H13420130918