Brazil's Chamber Approves 'Dosimetry' Bill to Cut Jan. 8 Sentences

Overview

• The Chamber passed the bill 291–148, replacing the sum of overlapping penalties with the harshest single penalty for crimes in the same context and easing progression thresholds, while allowing sentence remissions for work or study under home detention.
• If applied, opposition projections and the rapporteur’s math suggest Jair Bolsonaro’s time in the closed regime could fall to roughly two years and a few months from about seven years and eight months, but final calculations rest with the Supreme Court.
• The text now moves in the Senate under rapporteur Esperidião Amin, with CCJ consideration planned for next week and talk from Amin of debating amnesty, a notion rejected by government allies as unconstitutional.
• The Planalto opposes the measure and signals a possible veto if approved by senators, as opposition figures say Congress could try to override any veto once the bill returns for presidential action.
• Legal uncertainty persists because any law would likely face Supreme Court review and reductions would not be automatic, requiring case-by-case petitions, while the lower-house vote unfolded in a tense session with a deputy removed by force and media access curtailed.