Purpose of a Character Reference Letter
Understanding the Purpose of a Character Letter
Character letters provide the judge with a person’s view of the kind of person the defendant is. Or, what type of person they were before the incident for which the defendant is now charged. The judge will want to know how the defendant has treated other people. How do they treat their family? How about their friends? Their employment record? Do they have any history of violence, drug use, or alcohol involvement? Or, do they have a history of helping people in need? Can they give their employer a good reference of their type of work and the type of employee they have been? Do they have a family that would be impacted if they are separated from them by way of prison?
Character letters help to give that judge all the types of good and bad things the person has accomplished or done in the past. Or, what type of mistakes they have made before the one before the court. A judge does not want to hear things from just a 3rd cousin of the defendant who has only known him/her for a couple of years. The judge also don’t want to read the letter from a person who has known the defendant since he/she was born and who now wants to tell the judge about the time the defendant helped carry a person out of a burning building. The judge does want to hear from a person that knows how the defendant was immediately before the crime is alleged to have occurred.
The judge will also want to hear from a person that knows how the defendant has conducted themselves during the proceedings themselves. Such as: Has he/she been accepting responsibility for the crime alleged by paying back the victim? Does the defendant apologize for what they did and feel remorse for the action? Do they continue to work hard, and try to better themselves to show they are motivated to improve the parts of their life that let them down? Things such as work , family, and income.
Now, character letters can be very important in the criminal justice system. A character letter can help keep a person out of jail or prison. It can help the judge to impose a more lenient sentence. It can help to get a person a place in a treatment program, rather than jail. However, character letters are most issued and important during the probation process. When the judge believes that someone has violated their probation or parole they will usually issue both a notice to appear (or bench warrant) and a notice to appear in court (or summons). If that person does not have the money for bond, then they sit in custody until their probation revocation hearing is held in 30-60 days later. But, if no probation violation is found, then they could be out thousands of dollars in bond fees.
One of the best ways to mitigate all this is to have character letters submitted to the prosecutor (DA) long before the probation revocation hearing is set. For instance, using the inside information that you will get as your private attorney, you can find out if the DA is going to request prison time or jail time (that usually involves the defendant sitting in custody for 30 days to 90 days). Or you can find out if the DA is going to recommend something more expensive like a drug rehabilitation program that lasts several months.
If that is the case, then the character letters should be issued to the Judge and District Attorney long before the holding cell in the court room is cold and uncomfortable. Then, if you have a drug or alcohol problem, the letters can help to get you into a treatment program where you do the treatment and the time at the same time, but you do it in a residential treatment facility that is much more comfortable and livable than a jail or prison cell.
Elements of a Character Reference Letter
There are several essential components that are needed to form an effective character letter. These components should be taken into consideration while writing a character letter for reference in a court proceeding.
First, you should actually know the person you are character referencing. It is incredibly important that the letter is based on your own personal knowledge of the individual. This means you should have met the person you’re writing about. It is not a good idea to reference someone you do not know.
Second, you should spend time thinking about the tone and structure of the letter. The way you say things is almost as important as what you are saying. Generally speaking, the letter should be flexible and easy to read while still having a professional tone. You should always be polite and never be rude or disrespectful.
Third, you should consider the information you wish to include in the character letter. You do not need to write an autobiography, but it is a good idea to include some details or anecdotes that show your strong ties to the person in question. Those ties help underscore that the author cares about the person being referenced.
How to Start a Character Reference Letter
It is not only important what you say in your letter, but how your letter to the Court begins and ends. As with any formal letter, the way in which you address the Court in your letter should be carefully considered. Most importantly: always remember to use the correct title for the Judge and to spell that title and the Judge’s name correctly. Addressing a Judge as "Your Honor" is fine. More properly may the letter be addressed, "To The Honorable [full name of the Judge]," perhaps preceded by "Or Honorable." The same goes for salutations in a letter to an officer of the Court; use "Dear Officer," as opposed to "Dear Mr.," or "Dear Ms." The letter should conclude with the language "Respectfully submitted," followed by your name.
As a general rule, your character letter should be handwritten and signed by you—preferably in black ink. A character letter is a form of witness testimony and should not be typed.
Letters submitted by several people will often start with the letter "Dear Judge," and will then be signed by each letter writer. In this situation, there is probably no harm being more casual in your salutation. However, Jamra recommends starting with "Dear Judge," which is acceptable even if the Judge is a woman—unless you know she prefers one way or the other.
Writing about the Defendant’s Character
When writing about a defendant’s character in a character letter, it’s important to be specific and use real-life examples of how the defendant demonstrates a positive character to their family, community, or place of work. General words like "good" or "bad" aren’t very helpful and build no real understanding of the person’s character. In fact, there is often a misunderstanding by the audience of what those words actually mean, so try to avoid them. Instead, you may write something like "John has been a member of my soccer team for five years and every season he gives his full effort whether we’re winning or losing" to convey that John is a "good" person in a clear way. An abstract word like "good" is much less meaningful than the clear example of John’s character in the letter. The most important character traits the court will be interested in receiving a letter about include: Honesty Good Temper Hard Work Bravery Kindness Respectfulness Peacefulness Generosity Helping Family Involvement with Community Involvement with Church Trustworthiness Compassion for the Less Fortunate Willingness to Follow the Rules Honoring Relationships with Others If your letter includes references to other positive character qualities than those listed above, provide the reason for including it and explain in factual, rather than abstract, terms why that character quality is relevant to the issue at hand. For example, a letter addressing the defendant’s community involvement should include specific information about how the defendant has displayed the trait of "generosity," like showing up to his neighbor’s house without being asked and mowing the field next door or stopping to help someone who’s car has broken down on the side of the road. Your attorney should be concerned about explaining the character traits that are most relevant to the judge or court that will be reading them. There’s no need to focus your letter on a specific character trait, as they’re all equally important to the court. Make an effort to show several examples of a variety of positive character traits that the defendant possesses, so that the letter is well-rounded.
Tips for Writing a Character Reference Letter
There are some mistakes people commonly make that can affect whether the letter makes it to the judge or not, and whether it’s taken seriously or disregarded. Here are some do’s and don’ts:
DO: Make Sure Your Letter Goes to the Right Person. The judge won’t necessarily see the character letter you wrote if you give it to the prosecutor or defense attorney. The law allows you to submit the letter before your court date, but still, it should be submitted through your attorney. Specifically, your letter should go to the attorney handling the sentencing for the defendant.
DO: Include Important Information. Tell the judge the defendant’s reputation in the community and what the defendant has done to turn his or her life around. Include any information that shows remorse, such as supporting efforts at rehabilitation or treatment for substance abuse. Share your personal relationship with the defendant, including details about how long you’ve known him or her, if you know his or her family, etc.
DO: Write, Thank, and Send the Letter Yourself. Many people ask their attorney to write the character letter for them. However, a letter from the attorney isn’t a character letter—it’s just a letter from an attorney. If you want to make an impression on the judge, you’ll write the letter yourself. Make sure you spell out any acronyms you use, and don’t use text language or other types of shorthand—things like "lol," "omg," or "j/k" should all be avoided, just as much as profanity and poor grammar . Your character letter comes from you and should be written in your own voice. Send in your letter to the attorney handling the sentencing, not the judge directly.
DON’T: Make the Judge Feel Like an Idiot. When you’re writing your letter, remember that this is someone with a lot of education and experience in criminal cases. Don’t express disbelief about a conviction. Don’t say that you’ve never seen anyone so qualified get in trouble. The simplest way to fail at writing a character letter is to say that the conviction was a fluke or an issue with the system. No one wants to hear that your friend is a great person who was wrongly convicted.
DON’T: Include What the Judge Should Do. Respect the judge’s authority. While you might have some strong feelings about what the judge should do with the case, avoid telling him or her what the sentence should be in your character letter. Your opinions about what the punishment should be could end up hurting, not helping, your friend.
DON’T: Mention Criminal Justice Reform or Political Opinions. You’re not writing to sway the judge’s opinion or policymaking. Now is not the time to tell the judge that the criminal justice system unfairly punishes people of color or that minimum sentencing guidelines should be changed. Similarly, don’t include political opinions about the system or its handling of the case. This is probably not a winning strategy.
Character Reference Letter Template
[Date]
The Honorable [Judge’s Full Name]
[Judge’s Title]
[Court Name]
[Address Line 1]
[Address Line 2]
[City, State, Zip Code]
Re: Character Letter for [Name of Person Convicted]
Dear Judge [Honorable Last Name]:
My name is [Your Full Name] and I am a [Your Relationship to Person Convicted]. It is my understanding that my [son, daughter, husband, etc.], [Person Convicted’s First Name and Last Name], was recently sentenced for [his/her/their (if a business)] conviction of [Name of Offense]. I am writing this letter to ask for any leniency you might grant in the sentencing phase.
I have known [Person Convicted’s First Name] for [# of years] years. He or she has always been willing to help members of our community in any way he or she can. For example, he or she has [Give a specific example].
In addition to helping members of our community, [Person Convicted’s First Name] has: [List some other positive accomplishments].
As you can see, even though [Person Convicted’s First Name] is not perfect, his or her accomplishments have given him or her credibility in our community (and beyond). As such, I hope you see fit to grant him or her leniency in sentencing. Thank you for considering my views in this matter.
Sincerely,
[Signature (if sending a hard copy letter)]
[Typed Full Name]
Filing the Character Reference Letter
Once the character letter has been finalized, you must make plans to have the letter submitted to the court. Most courts require that these letters are submitted one full week before sentencing. With that said, it is best to get it in at least a few weeks in advance. It is also important to find out what the process is for having the letter delivered to the court. It is most common for the letter to be typed and then filed with the court itself. Just check with your attorney to see if there is a specific process that you should follow to get the letter to the clerk of the court. The letter should never be delivered to the judge or to the bailiff , and it is usually best to not hand-deliver it yourself.
There is also the option of requesting permission from the judge to give the letter directly to him or her. This is relatively uncommon, but it is possible in some cases. If the judge agrees, then you can deliver it directly. Do recognize, however, that most people will not get this special permission, so you should not plan on this being an option.
In some courts, the typical time for submitting character letters of this nature has been shortened to just one week before sentencing. For example, in the Connecticut state courts, the time limit is one week before sentencing. You’ll need to check with your own court to confirm what the time requirement is, and then you can finalize your character letter and deliver as soon as is possible.