Minister Edson Fachin, of the Federal Supreme Court (STF), overturned the decision of the Superior Court of Justice (STJ) that decided that the Federal Court, and not the State Court of Minas Gerais, should judge the criminal action against 16 people, including the former president of Vale Fábio Schvartsman, for the failure of the Córrego do Feijão mine dam, in Brumadinho (MG), in January 2019.
In practice, the State Justice is again competent to process and judge the cases of the tragedy.
Rapporteur of the appeal in habeas corpus in the STJ, the judge summoned Olindo Menezes said that the Federal Court is responsible for the unified judgment of related crimes of federal and state competence.
When overturning the STJ’s understanding, Fachin stated that the STJ’s decision “did not present elements that demonstrate and justify the direct and specific interest of the Union.
“It so happens that this Federal Supreme Court has already had the opportunity to register that the connection rule only has the ability to modify relative, and not absolute, competences”, said Fachin.
For the minister, in the process, there are related facts being investigated both at the state and federal levels.
“The criminal prosecution has already been initiated by the Public Ministry of the State of Minas Gerais and the State Court has already recognized its competence, since it received the complaint. Therefore, I do not see any legal plausibility in recognizing, a priori, the competence of the Federal Court based on investigations still in an embryonic stage”, he said.
Sought, the defense has not yet manifested.
Source: CNN Brasil
