Of the 633 people imprisoned for the crime of aborto in Brazil at the end of 2023, more than 98% were men. The information is from the National Secretariat of Penal Policies (SENAPPEN) and was released by Carlos Madeiro’s column for UOL.
Under current law, a man can be arrested for the crime of abortion if he forces the woman to perform the procedure against her wishes.
According to SENAPPEN, the number of men arrested for this type of crime has increased for five consecutive years. Last year, it reached its highest level since 2017, the year in which data with typification began to be accounted for and made available.
Regardless of the modality, those accused of the crime of abortion go to a popular jury. Nowadays, the legislation provides for a sentence of up to three years for pregnant women who perform it.
According to the publication, convictions do not lead to imprisonment due to the need for a criminal transaction. Since 2019, with Law 13,964/2019 (known as the anti-crime package), the Code of Criminal Procedure establishes the chance of a non-prosecution agreement, corresponding to a pre-procedural negotiation between the Public Prosecutor’s Office (MP) and the investigated.
This situation occurs when the offense is committed without the use of violence or serious threat. Another condition is when the crime has a minimum sentence of less than four years.
“Now there is a possibility that the woman, when confessing to the abortion, will not be prosecuted. She can make this non-prosecution agreement in which she agrees to comply with conditions that are less costly than the criminal sanction,” said Marcelo Balzer Correia, prosecutor of the Curitiba jury trial.
Imprisonment
in
a closed regime only occurs when the crime is committed by a third party, that is, when someone forces a pregnant woman to have an abortion without consent. For these cases, the penalty ranges from three to 10 years.
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