Overview
- The court in Santarém issued the acquittal in late July 2026 after Judge Nícolas Gabry da Silveira concluded the recorded statements did not meet the elements of the charged crimes.
- The remarks at issue were made in a private conversation in Alter do Chão on August 2, 2023, when the defendant said Lula 'should take a shot' and that a .22 caliber could hit the president.
- The Ministério Público Federal reviewed witness testimony and other evidence during the investigation and formally reversed its initial position by asking the court to absolve the defendant.
- The judge based the ruling on legal standards that incitement requires publicity and a concrete call to violence, finding the comments were private, generic, lacked a targeted plan, and did not show proven criminal intent.
- The case remains open to appeal, the formal complaint included separate allegations about seeking Lula’s lodging and links to January 8 events that did not determine the acquittal, and the outcome could shape how similar speech is prosecuted in Brazil’s polarized political climate.