Mates of former Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) requested the decide overseeing his federal corruption case to weigh his a long time of public service when deciding his sentence subsequent month.
In letters to U.S. District Decide Sidney Stein, Menendez’s associates — a lot of whom stated they’ve recognized the previous senator for many years — pointed to his advocacy work and private friendships as motive the decide ought to subject Menendez a extra lenient penalty.
Robb Watters, founding father of the lobbying agency Madison Group, stated he met Menendez in 1998 whereas engaged on the medium vary missile switch for Israel that 12 months, kicking off “one of the truest friendships” he has encountered within the nation’s capital. The pair have dined collectively each three weeks for 26 years, he stated.
“My purpose in writing this letter and sharing my own experiences with Sen. Menendez is to ensure that the Court can truly see the man that he is, and fairly understand that justice would not be served by a lengthy sentence,” Watters stated in a Sept. 4 letter to the court docket, made public Thursday. “I ask for mercy and understanding for a life that has been devoted to public service, as one who holds a close personal bond with the man, I hope you see.”
Joan Dublin, president of the Metropolitan Household Well being Community in Jersey Metropolis, N.J., pointed to Menendez’s “dedication to the underserved” in her Aug. 19 letter to the court docket and stated she’s sure that is Menendez’s “lowest point ever in his life.”
“Surely the way he has uplifted his community and each individual whose life Bob has improved must count for something to help minimize the consequences which you have the power to impose,” Dublin stated.
Three different associates wrote letters: a Washington, D.C.-based lawyer representing New Jersey shoppers, who stated he has recognized Menendez for greater than 36 years; the chief director of an grownup autism group, the Daniel Jordan Fiddle Basis; and a Puerto Rican group chief in Hoboken, N.J.
On the time of publication, none of Menendez’s colleagues within the U.S. Senate had written letters in his help that have been made public in court docket filings.
In July, Menendez was discovered responsible of all 16 counts he confronted, from accepting luxurious bribes in alternate for his political clout to appearing as a international agent of Egypt. As soon as chair of the highly effective Senate Overseas Relations Committee, he now stares down a long time in jail.
The New Jersey Democrat maintained his innocence and pleaded not responsible, although he stepped away from his put up main the Senate Overseas Relations Committee after being indicted, according to Senate Democratic Convention guidelines. He resigned from the Senate in August.
He has vowed to enchantment the conviction, telling reporters after the jury delivered its verdict that he has “never been anything but a patriot of my country and for my country.” His sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 29.
