Brazil's Rousseff appeals impeachment to Supreme Court

Brazil's former President Dilma Rousseff, who was removed by the Brazilian Senate from office on Wednesday, speaks at the Alvorada Palace in Brasilia, Brazil, August 31, 2016. [Photo/Agencies]

BRASILIA - Brazil's Dilma Rousseff appealed the decision of her impeachment from the presidency to the Federal Supreme Court on Thursday, a day after being stripped of office.

Rousseff's defense team submitted a "writ of security" against the Senate vote that found her guilty on Wednesday of being "criminally responsible" for fiscal wrongdoing.

A "writ of security" is a Brazilian legal tool to protect individuals from legal decisions that may violate their rights.

The head of her legal team, former Justice Minister and Attorney General Jose Eduardo Cardozo, had previously announced that they would resort to the measure, citing "irregularities in the process" of impeachment.

Rousseff was impeached by an overwhelming majority of 61 to 20 votes, for allegedly inflating fiscal accounts and downplaying a growing budget deficit to improve her chances of being elected to a second term.

Rousseff, of the left-leaning Workers' Party, has denied the charges, saying the trial was politically motivated by the right-wing opposition.

Her vice-president, Michel Temer, of the conservative Brazilian Democratic Movement Party, was sworn in to serve the remainder of her term through 2018.