STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:
Brazil's Supreme Court has found former President Jair Bolsonaro guilty of attempting a military coup after losing the 2022 election.
MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
The justice leading the case called the plot, quote, "an attempt to sow the malignant seed of anti-democracy," unquote. In the end, all but one of the judges on a five-member panel found him guilty. Now the far-right leader, a close ally of President Trump, faces more than 27 years in prison.
INSKEEP: Reporter Julia Carneiro is in Rio de Janeiro and covering this. Welcome to the program.
JULIA CARNEIRO: Thank you, Steve.
INSKEEP: OK, so I'm just thinking this through. It's different than a trial would be in the United States. It is the Supreme Court, or a portion of the Supreme Court - a 4-1 vote against the former president. What are the details of the verdict?
CARNEIRO: Well, Bolsonaro is facing five charges, and he's been found guilty on all of them, including attempting a coup after losing the election and leading a criminal organization. Seven other defendants were also in the trial and were also convicted, including three former generals. The justices said there was ample evidence of Bolsonaro's moves to overthrow the government, and these actions included a plan to assassinate the then-president-elect, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, before he could take office and also culminated with the January 8 riots back in 2023. That's when Bolsonaro supporters vandalized government buildings in the capital, Brasilia, after - just days after Lula's inauguration. Now the 70-year-old faces 27 years and three months in prison.
INSKEEP: And there's another difference between a lot of trials in the United States and how this works. It seems they have issued the guilty verdict and the sentence at roughly the same time on the same day rather than in separate phases. How are people in Brazil receiving this news?
CARNEIRO: Well, Bolsonaro is still very popular, and his supporters consider the trial unfair and will likely double up on efforts to pressure Congress for it to approve some kind of amnesty law to defend Bolsonaro. But many Brazilians greeted the news with relief as a landmark defense of democracy. This is a country that's had a history of coup attempts, and it was the first time that a former president was punished for trying to stage a coup. Remember, we 40 years ago were coming out of a 20-year dictatorship. Justice Alexandre de Moraes emphasized the importance of the verdict.
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ALEXANDRE DE MORAES: (Speaking Portuguese).
CARNEIRO: Moraes said the sentence given should discourage any future attempt to destroy democracy and the idea that it would be possible to disrupt the rule of law and stay in power, disrespecting free and fair elections. But Bolsonaro's defense lawyer said the prison sentence was excessive and disproportionate. And in the United States, Bolsonaro's son, Eduardo, who's been lobbying on his father's behalf, predicted further sanctions from the U.S. in response.
INSKEEP: Well, he got some vocal support in the United States from President Trump leading up to the verdict. Has the president said anything since the verdict?
CARNEIRO: Yes. He spoke to reporters at the White House and said Bolsonaro had been a good president and it was very surprising that this could happen. He said, quote, "that's very much like they tried to do with me, but they didn't get away with it at all." Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Brazil's Supreme Court had, quote, "unjustly ruled to imprison" Bolsonaro and the United States would, quote, "respond accordingly to this witch hunt." Remember, President Trump slapped 50% terrorists on Brazilian goods because of the trial, and now there's fear that more could come.
INSKEEP: Yeah, interesting that the United States would use tools of its power based on the president's personal opinion of a trial in another country. Have we heard from Bolsonaro himself?
CARNEIRO: No, not so far. Bolsonaro followed the verdict from home. He's under house arrest. He won't be sent to prison for now while he can still try to appeal the decision, but he seems to be out of the political game for good for now. But he's still the leader of the far right, has strong support and will try to influence next year's presidential elections. So let's see what's to come.
INSKEEP: OK. Julia Carneiro, thanks so much.
CARNEIRO: Thank you, Steve.
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