STF uses prescribed case in judgment that can release possession of marijuana

The São Paulo Association of Public Prosecutors (APMP) issued a technical note in which it states that the case under analysis in the judgment of the Federal Supreme Court (STF), which can release the possession of marijuana for personal consumption, has been prescribed for 10 years. The judgment in the STF was resumed last Wednesday (24), after eight years without movements. A request for a review by Minister André Mendonça again suspended the process, but the scoreboard already registers five votes in favor of the release and one against.

The process that led to the judgment of the STF, gaining general repercussions, refers to the case of a prisoner who was caught, in 2009, with marijuana for personal use in a jail in Diadema (SP). He was sentenced to community service for the incident in July 2010.

In the document, APMP attorneys explain the procedures of the process, with dates and passages through different courts. “The prescription would be given in two years and eight months from then, so it was operated on March 22, 2013, more than ten years ago”, says the technical note. Therefore, in the opinion of the Association, the process should be terminated without judgment of the appeal by the STF. “The statute of limitations must be recognized, extinguishing the process without the judgment of the Extraordinary Appeal under discussion”, state the São Paulo prosecutors in a note.

The prosecutors also point out that the decriminalization of drug possession for personal use is unconstitutional, in addition to violating other international pacts signed by Brazil, such as the Single Convention on Narcotics, which prohibits the possession and use of narcotics. The Association also states that, according to current legislation, “the decriminalization of drug use is not seen as possible (in totumor with restrictions such as type or quantity of drugs)”.

“The decriminalization of drug possession has no constitutional support, given the necessary goal of goods with protection in the Magna Carta, showing the rights to life, health and safety to be prevalent”, point out the APMP prosecutors.