The prosecutor in the case of Agostina Páez, a 29-year-old Argentine lawyer arrested in Brazil in mid-January and accused of racist conduct, has requested she be sent to prison to await trial. 

She could be sentenced up to 5 years in jail if found guilty

Páez’s case, which began as a late-night argument in a bar and escalated to a racial incident, is at the center of a growing legal controversy that is making headlines in Argentina and Brazil. 

The debate is split across the lines of what is an apt penalty for the offense. While some argue that jail time is too harsh a punishment, others have pointed out that the responsibility of Argentine citizens abroad is to know the law, in this case, Brazil’s strict anti-racism legislation.

The incident took place at a bar in Ipanema, one of........

© Buenos Aires Herald