Court in Santa Catarina convicts Zé Trovão for violence against his ex-partner.

247 - The Santa Catarina State Court has ordered federal deputy Marcos Antônio Pereira Gomes, known as Zé Trovão (PL), to pay R$ 50 in damages for moral harm to his former partner, Jéssica da Costa Veiga. The decision was handed down by Judge Karen Francis Schubert of the 1st Special Civil Court of the Joinville District, and recognizes that the parliamentarian committed physical, psychological, moral, and political violence against the victim.

In the ruling, the magistrate highlighted that there was physical aggression, admitted by the congressman himself in an interview with the Metrópoles news portal, when he stated that he had slapped Jéssica in the face. According to the judge, the claim of retaliation lacks legal basis. "Even if he tries to justify his conduct as retaliation, there is no legal support for physical violence in intimate relationships, and retaliation is not an exclusion of unlawfulness," wrote Karen Schubert.

In addition to the assault, the court ruling also considered that Zé Trovão used his political influence to pressure the PL leadership to remove Jéssica from the presidency of PL Mulher in Joinville. The act was classified as psychological, political, and economic violence, as it compromised the victim's participation in party life.

Another relevant point in the ruling refers to the congressman's public statements, in which he claimed that his ex-partner had problems with alcohol. The judge considered these statements to be defamatory, exposing the victim's private life in a humiliating way and damaging her reputation.

The parliamentarian's defense, in turn, argued that his statements were protected by parliamentary immunity and freedom of expression. However, the judge rejected the argument, clarifying that these were facts related to his personal life, with no connection to legislative activity. "Having committed an illegal act with his words, he cannot claim immunity under the guise of freedom of expression," the magistrate stated.

The proceedings, initially under judicial secrecy, had their confidentiality lifted at the request of Jéssica da Costa Veiga's defense. The victim's lawyer, Ananias Cipriano, argued that the secrecy benefited the congressman, since he used social media and interviews to present his version of events, while the victim remained prevented from speaking publicly. The court accepted the request, maintaining restrictions only on sensitive documents.