Former Brazil president Jair Bolsonaro’s jail term cut after chaotic vote
Jair Bolsonaro could be released from prison 25 years early under new law
- Brazilian lawmakers have controversially voted to significantly shorten the prison sentence of former president Jair Bolsonaro.
- The approved bill could reduce Bolsonaro's 27-year term, received for plotting a coup against President Lula, to just over two years.
- The legislation also aims to reduce sentences for individuals convicted for their involvement in the January 2023 riot, where Bolsonaro supporters stormed government buildings.
- Passed by a 291-148 vote amidst chaotic scenes, the bill now faces opposition from the Senate, the Supreme Court, and President Lula, who is expected to veto it.
- Lula's Institutional Relations Minister Gleisi Hoffmann criticised the vote as a "serious setback" that weakens democratic laws and challenges Supreme Court rulings.