Standards de prova no processo penal: os critérios de suficiência probatória, sua sistematização e a aplicabilidade do proof beyond a reasonable doubt no Brasil

Abstract

This doctoral thesis addresses the standards of proof in the sphere of criminal proceedings, that is, it deals with the criteria of the sufficiency of evidence that should guide the conduct of the parties and the judicial decision-making on the facts in the context of criminal justice. Based on the concept of rationalistic evaluation of the evidence and the Anglo-American experience on the subject, it was sought to clarify the degrees of sufficiency of evidence or the levels of confirmation of the factual hypotheses in order to have a citizen's provisional detention ordered, to have a charge brought against him received by a court of competent jurisdiction and, above all, to have the presumption of innocence considered to have been superseded and to have the accused convicted. At this point, the applicability of the standard of proof beyond a reasonable doubt in Brazil was assessed. The research sought the origin, the evolution and the controversies surrounding that American doctrine, having concluded that it is compatible with the governing principles of the Brazilian criminal procedure, and tried to establish its adequate understanding and possible improvement in order to guide the assessment of the probative value of evidence and the consideration of the merits of criminal cases. Finally, this study also proposed the systematization of the existing standards of proof in the Brazilian criminal legal system.