Nunes Marques launches process that could overturn Jair Bolsonaro’s conviction at Brazil’s Supreme Court

Brazil’s Supreme Court has formally begun reviewing a criminal appeal filed by Jair Bolsonaro’s defense team seeking to overturn his conviction in the alleged coup plot case. Minister Nunes Marques, who is handling the request, opened a 20-day period for Attorney General Paulo Gonet to submit the prosecution’s position on the case. The move marks the start of a legal process that could, in the most extreme outcome, invalidate the former president’s conviction.

Bolsonaro’s lawyers filed the review request earlier this month, asking the court to annul the 27-year-and-3-month prison sentence imposed in the case. The defense argues that the conviction resulted from a serious judicial error and claims the Supreme Court should reverse the decision. Among the main arguments are a request to nullify the plea agreement and testimony of Mauro Cid, a former aide and key witness in the investigation, as well as a request to send the matter to the full Supreme Court for reconsideration.

The filing also challenges the way the case was handled procedurally. According to the defense, Bolsonaro should have been judged by all justices of the Supreme Court rather than by a smaller panel. The lawyers further argue that they were denied full access to crucial evidence collected during the investigation, which they say compromised the right to a proper defense.

In their petition, Bolsonaro’s attorneys say the record does not contain any order or instruction from the former president related to the January 8, 2023 attacks on Brazil’s democratic institutions. They contend that this absence of direct evidence supports their claim that the conviction should be reversed.

Under the Supreme Court’s internal rules, the revision criminal will be decided by the Second Chamber, which is made up of justices André Mendonça, Nunes Marques, Gilmar Mendes, Dias Toffoli and Luiz Fux. The case now enters a stage in which the prosecution and the court will assess whether the defense has presented enough grounds to justify reopening or overturning the conviction.

The request adds a new chapter to one of Brazil’s most politically sensitive legal battles. Bolsonaro was convicted as the alleged leader of a plot to undermine the democratic order, and the defense is now seeking to dismantle that ruling by questioning both the evidence and the legal process behind it. The next step will depend on the attorney general’s response and, later, on how the Supreme Court’s Second Chamber evaluates the merits of the challenge.