Character letter for sentencing

What the letter is for

At sentencing, the judge has already decided or accepted that the person is guilty, and is deciding what sentence to give. In federal court the judge must consider the person’s “history and characteristics”, and letters from family and friends are the main way people who know them speak to that.

Your letter gives the judge things the court file doesn’t show: what the person is like at home and at work, what they have done for others, and who stands by them now.

Acknowledge the conviction

Say in a sentence or two that you know why the person is in court. Federal defender offices tell writers to make clear they know the charge and not to ignore that the person has been convicted.

You don’t need to describe what happened in detail, and you shouldn’t argue that the person is innocent or that someone else is to blame. Avoid words that make the offense sound smaller than it is, such as “only one mistake”.

Show the person’s character with a moment

Tell one or two specific moments you saw yourself. A former federal judge, Mark Bennett, has written that general praise and blanket pleas for mercy add little, while a factual example is worth reading.

Say when it was, where, and what the person did. In the sample letter, Angela describes her brother driving their father to dialysis three mornings a week for two years before his warehouse shift.

Remorse and change, if you have seen it

If the person has shown remorse or made changes since the arrest, describe what you saw rather than saying they are sorry. Steady work, treatment they attend and things they have told you about the harm are facts a judge can weigh.

Only write what is true. If you haven’t seen remorse or change, leave this part out rather than guess.

Describe the support after sentencing

Say what support the person has and what you will do yourself. That can include a place to live, a job, family nearby, treatment, rides to appointments or visits. Judge Bennett has written that he wants a factual plan of this kind and has rarely received one.

Offer only what you will really do, because the judge may take you at your word.

How to close

Ask the judge to consider the person you have described, and thank them for reading. Australian court guidance says a letter should not say what penalty the writer thinks is right, and Judge Bennett has written that he often discounts letters that tell him the sentence.

Some lawyers have their own view on this, so if you want to say more than “please consider who he is”, ask the lawyer first.

When and where to send it

Give the letter to the defense lawyer, and ask when they need it. Many defense lawyers ask for letters at least a week or two before the sentencing date so they can read them and file them together.

Our questions follow this order for a sentencing letter and show your answers as a one-page letter as you write.

Questions