Lula presses to remove crusading Brazil judge from his case
| Tue Jul 5, 2016 6:09pm EDT
Lula presses to remove crusading Brazil judge from his case
SAO PAULO, July 5 | By Brad Haynes
Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's lawyers asked on Tuesday that crusading federal judge Sergio Moro be removed from a corruption investigation involving the former president, arguing he had shown a lack of impartiality.
The filing highlighted a showdown between two of Brazil's most prominent public figures - the former president who remains a front-runner in polling for the 2018 presidential race and the judge who jailed several of Lula's closest allies.
The lawyers said a decision by Moro to publicly release Lula's wiretapped conversations in March "caused public embarrassment," leading to lawsuits in which the judge himself could eventually be held liable.
The judge's explanation of his decision before the Supreme Court also suggested that Lula had obstructed justice and concealed ownership of a country estate, Lula's lawyers told journalists in Sao Paulo, calling Moro an "accusatory judge."
More:
http://www.reuters.com/article/brazil-corruption-lula-idUSL1N19R1XI?rpc=401
