The majority of ministers of the Federal Supreme Court (STF) voted to abolish strip searches as a condition for entering prisons. The theme is being judged in the virtual plenary until the end of this Friday (19). By majority decision, the practice is vexatious and is prohibited in any establishment where there is segregation of people. In these places, the undressing, partial or not, of visitors is also prohibited. Evidence eventually obtained by intimate search loses its validity, the majority decided. The ministers ruled out the possibility that the procedure could be justified in any way, mainly due to the lack of equipment. The vote of Minister Edson Fachin, rapporteur for the topic, prevailed. The minister agreed with the arguments presented in an extraordinary appeal presented to the Supreme Court, in which the defense of a woman from Rio Grande do Sul asked for the annulment of evidence obtained through intimate searches. The appeal has recognized general repercussions. This means that the outcome of this process should serve as a parameter for all similar cases across the country. For this, the majority of ministers approved a thesis suggested by Fachin, with the following content: “The vexatious practice of the intimate search in social visits in establishments of compulsory segregation, prohibited in any form or way the stripping of visitors and the abominable inspection of their body cavities, and the evidence obtained from it is illicit, and the absence of electronic and radioscopic equipment is not an excuse.” In the decision, the rapporteur clarifies that personal searches are legitimate, without revealing and provided that the visitor has already gone through equipment such as metal detectors and X-rays. It is also necessary that there be “concrete elements or documents that materialize and justify the suspicion of possession of illegal or prohibited substances/objects, in order to allow for judicial control, as well as civil, criminal and administrative liability in the event of any arbitrariness ”, says the text adhered to by the majority. In the specific case, the ministers judged the appeal of a woman who was caught in a prison in Rio Grande do Sul with 96.09 grams of marijuana hidden in her private parts. The drug would be taken to her arrested brother. The Public Defender’s Office alleged that the evidence of the offense was obtained through a procedure that violates the dignity of the human person, among other violations, and for that reason there would be no way to validate the evidence. The Public Prosecutor’s Office of RS appealed, stating that it was not possible to create a kind of “criminal immunity” for the entry of drugs into penitentiaries. Ministers Cármen Lúcia, Luís Roberto Barroso, André Mendonça, Rosa Weber and Gilmar Mendes voted with Fachin. Ministers Alexandre de Moraes, Dias Toffoli and Nunes Marques disagreed. Luiz Fux hasn’t voted yet. For divergence, the intimate search could be carried out, provided that with the agreement of the visitor and under a pre-established protocol, by a person of the same gender, who must have a degree in medicine in the event of invasive exams. “If the visitor does not agree, the administrative authority may prevent the visit from taking place”, wrote Moraes in his vote.
Agência Brasil
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