STM says it will rule on patent loss for those convicted in the coup plot following the Provisional Measure.
The Military Court is composed of 15 ministers and will decide, in plenary session, on the maintenance or loss of officer status.
247 - The Superior Military Court (STM) released a statement this Friday (12) affirming that the body will pronounce itself on the loss of ranks of military personnel in the investigation of the coup plot after a statement from the Military Public Prosecutor's Office (MPM). The STM is composed of 15 ministers — ten military (four from the Army, three from the Navy and three from the Air Force) and five civilians — and will decide, in plenary session, on the maintenance or loss of officer rank.
"This is a measure of great importance for the military career, intended to protect the honor, discipline, and hierarchy of the Armed Forces, ensuring, in balance, the dignity of the uniform and the fundamental rights of military personnel," stated the STM (Superior Military Court).
The Supreme Federal Court has indicted eight people in the investigation of the coup plot. Of the total, five will face trial in the Superior Military Court: Jair Bolsonaro (reserve captain of the Army), Army generals Walter Braga Netto, Augusto Heleno, Paulo Sérgio Nogueira, and Navy admiral Almir Garnier.
Another military officer (Lieutenant Colonel Mauro Cid) is a defendant, but will not be tried in the Superior Military Court. He made a plea bargain.
Here's an excerpt from the statement released by the STM:
The Brazilian Constitution establishes as a prerogative of the Superior Military Court (STM) the jurisdictional review of Representations for Unworthiness or Incompatibility for Officer Status (article 142, § 3, VI), which may result in the loss of rank and patent of officers of the Armed Forces.
Thus, an officer convicted, in a final and unappealable judgment, to a prison sentence exceeding two years—for a military or common crime—may be subject to this procedure in the Superior Military Court (STM), provided there is a representation from the Military Public Prosecutor's Office (MPM). The Military Court is responsible only for deciding on the suitability of the officer to remain in the post, without re-evaluating the merits of the conviction already handed down.
As reinforced by the Chief Justice of the Superior Military Court (STM), Maria Elizabeth Rocha: “The Court's actions depend on prior request from the Military Public Prosecutor's Office, making any ex officio action impossible. The STM exercises an eminently jurisdictional function; the execution of decisions, such as the eventual loss of rank and commission, occurs at the administrative level, under the responsibility of the Military Command of the Force to which the convicted officer belongs.”
In addition to the constitutional provision, the action of Unworthiness or Incompatibility with the officer corps is regulated by the Military Penal Code (articles 98 to 104), the Military Statute (articles 118 to 120), and the Internal Regulations of the Superior Military Court (articles 115 to 117). In the case of incompatibility, it concerns serious administrative conduct, even without a criminal conviction.
