Brazilian Supreme Court rules that transcripts of wiretaps must be complete.

247 with Legal Consultant - The Supreme Federal Court confirmed, by majority vote, the decision of Minister Marco Aurélio that guaranteed federal deputy Sebastião Bala Rocha (PDT-AP) the right to the full transcript of telephone interceptions made within the scope of Criminal Action 508, in which he is accused of the alleged crimes of corruption and forming a criminal organization. This precedent could oblige the police and the Public Prosecutor's Office to transcribe the entire content of telephone interceptions in criminal investigations, and not just the excerpts of interest to the prosecution.

The case originates from an investigation into construction and renovation works at the Hospital Especialidades in Macapá (AP) and the Laranjal do Jari Bus Terminal (AP). The Federal Public Prosecutor's Office questioned the decision that mandated the full transcript.

According to Marco Aurélio, formality is essential for validating a wiretap as evidence. Law 9.296/1996, which regulates wiretapping, stipulates that whenever a communication is recorded, its transcription must be ordered.

In analyzing the specific case, the minister stated that the rule was not observed. Therefore, there was no complete transcript of any debate or conversation involving the defendant and the other parties involved; the process only included excerpts of dialogues, obtained on different days and at different times.

According to lawyer Nabor Bulhões, who defends Cachoeira, the decision is a step forward. "The transcript has to be accurate. Often, the investigator limits himself to making reports interpreting excerpts and, with that, alters the content and meaning of the interceptions. This has often led to notorious errors."

Operation Hurricane

Justice Marco Aurélio stated that the Supreme Court's precedent regarding Operation Hurricane, Inquiry 2.424, was an exception. In that case, the full transcript of the wiretaps was not granted, only access to the audio version.

“I recall that in the precedent of Operation Hurricane, the deadline for interception was not observed, and more than 40 hours of recordings were obtained. The court, given this peculiarity, ordered the delivery of the media. But I think that this is not the specific case here,” he said. Minister Marco Aurélio's position was supported by Ministers Cármen Lúcia, Dias Toffoli, Ricardo Lewandowski, and Joaquim Barbosa (president).

Divergence

Justice Teori Zavascki dissented from the case based on established jurisprudence from the full court. According to the Justice, the transcript should only include the parts relevant to the case, without needing to transcribe anything irrelevant—without prejudice to access to the audio version of the interceptions. “Nothing prevents broad access to the entirety of the media for those interested,” he stated. Justices Rosa Weber, Luiz Fux, and Gilmar Mendes followed the same position. (Information from the STF Press Office.)