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Brazil High Court Judge Grants Bolsonaro House Arrest on Health Grounds

The ruling applies a narrow health exception subject to strict controls with a set review date.

A supporter of former far-right Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro protests after he began serving a 27-year prison sentence for a coup plot against his successor, Brazil’s current President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, in Brasilia, Brazil, November 30, 2025. REUTERS/Jorge Silva/File Photo
Brazil’s former President Jair Bolsonaro looks on from his home as Sao Paulo’s Governor Tarcisio de Freitas (not pictured) leaves after a visit in Brasilia, Brazil September 29, 2025. REUTERS/Diego Herculano
Jair Bolsonaro has been hospitalised multiple times since being stabbed at a campaign event before the 2018 presidential election. (Photo: Reuters/File)
Former Brazilian President (2019-2022) Jair Bolsonaro leaves the DF Star hospital in Brasilia on September 14, 2025, after undergoing a series of medical examinations, as he remains under house arrest. Brazil's Supreme Court on September 11 sentenced firebrand ex-president Jair Bolsonaro to 27 years in prison for coup plotting at the end of a landmark trial that divided the nation and drew US fury. Sergio Lima/AFP via Getty

Overview

  • Justice Alexandre de Moraes approved the house arrest Tuesday, setting a 90-day review and making it effective once Jair Bolsonaro leaves the hospital.
  • The order requires an ankle monitor, blocks cellphones or other outside communication, limits visitors to family, lawyers and doctors, and places his Brasília home under police watch with no protests allowed nearby.
  • Bolsonaro has been hospitalized since March 13 with pneumonia, spent days in intensive care for kidney issues, then moved to a regular room as doctors reported improvement without a discharge date.
  • Attorney General Paulo Gonet urged house imprisonment Monday based on medical reports, and the judge warned any rule-breaking would send Bolsonaro back to prison or a prison hospital, a strict stance shaped by his prior ankle monitor tampering before sentencing.
  • The decision lands as the 2026 race takes shape, with son Sen. Flávio Bolsonaro saying he will run and some outlets noting restrictions that curb the former president’s contact with political allies as polls show a close contest with President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.