Brazilian courts authorize Jair Bolsonaro to extend his house arrest for health reasons

Brazil’s Supreme Court authorized on Friday that former President Jair Bolsonaro continue to serve his sentence under house arrest.

The ruling indefinitely extends the 90-day reprieve originally granted in March, when the former president had to leave the prison after being rushed to the hospital due to severe pneumonia.

Supreme Federal Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes approved the request filed by the defense team of the Brazilian right-wing leader to avoid returning to prison.

Bolsonaro is serving a 27-year sentence handed down last September for his alleged involvement in an attempted coup to remain in power following the closely contested 2022 presidential election, in which the current leftist president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, emerged victorious.

Given his physical condition, the court opted to allow him to serve his sentence outside traditional detention facilities.

The medical factor and the controversial seizure of a weapon

At 71, Bolsonaro’s health has deteriorated significantly due to the aftereffects of the stabbing he suffered during the 2018 presidential campaign.

The former president had already been formally imprisoned earlier this year after alleged anomalies were detected in the monitoring of his electronic ankle monitor, a situation that confined him to a special cell until his temporary release on medical grounds.

The extension signed by Moraes was preceded by moments of tension due to a police inspection in which a firearm was confiscated from a military officer assigned to the former president’s security detail.

Although the firearm was legally registered, the officer was not carrying the required documentation at the time of the inspection. In response to the court’s order, the Attorney General’s Office determined that the incident did not constitute a disciplinary offense attributable to Bolsonaro, although Friday’s ruling granted his legal team a strict 48-hour deadline to turn the device over to the court.

Legal Proceedings in the Midst of the Election Campaign

The legal disputes surrounding Bolsonaro continue to decisively shape the October presidential election.

His eldest son, Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, has established himself as the opposition’s leading candidate to challenge Lula da Silva for the presidency. Among his key campaign promises, Flávio has proposed granting his father amnesty and initiating impeachment proceedings against Supreme Court justices, with a particular focus on Moraes.

The legal onslaught against the former president’s inner circle intensified in mid-June, when the same court sentenced his other son, Eduardo Bolsonaro, to more than four years in prison.

The court found him guilty of alleged illegal interference in judicial proceedings by lobbying the administration of President Donald Trump in Washington to pressure Brazilian institutions. Eduardo currently resides in the United States.