JUDGE HOLDS OFF ON INDICTING GREENWALD

A Brazilian judge on Thursday decided to hold off on indicting American journalist Glenn Greenwald on charges that he committed cyber crimes related to his reporting on top Brazilian officials.

According to The Intercept, where Greenwald is a co-founding editor, Brazilian Judge Ricardo Augusto Soares Leite ruled that proceedings would not move forward “for now” against Greenwald due to a previous ruling by the country’s Supreme Court that anti-corruption reporting by the outlet had not violated any laws.

However, Leite noted that if the previous ruling had not occurred, the case against Greenwald would have moved forward.

Leite did rule that proceedings would go forward against six individuals accused of directly hacking the phones of Brazilian officials, according to The New York Times.

Greenwald was charged with cyber crimes by Brazilian prosecutors in January after the publication of articles based on leaked phone calls involving Brazilian Justice Minister Sergio Moro. These articles were part of The Intercept’s series on “Operation Car Wash,” a federal police investigation that charged high-profile companies and top officials with misconduct.

Greenwald tweeted Thursday that the decision “protects me from lawsuits” but noted that his “goal is not just to protect myself.”