Political Constitution of Colombia (1991)

The following rules shall be observed in the decisions made by the Senate:

The accused is automatically suspended from his/her office whenever he/she admits publicly to a charge.

If the charge refers to crimes committed in the exercise of his/her functions or that he/she becomes unworthy to serve because of a misdemeanor, the Senate may only impose the sanction of discharge from office or the temporary or absolute suspension of political rights. But the accused shall be brought to trial before the Supreme Court of Justice if the evidence demonstrates that the individual to be responsible for an infraction deserves other penalties.

If the charge refers to common crimes, the Senate shall confine itself to declare if there are grounds or not for further measures, and in the affirmative case it shall place the accused at the disposal of the Supreme Court.

The Senate may commission a task force from among its own ranks for investigation, reserving for itself the decision and definitive sanction to be pronounced in a public session by at least two-thirds of the votes of the Senators present.