Former Sen. Bob Menendez's lawyers ask judge for leniency in corruption case

Ryan Tarinelli, CQ-Roll Call on Jan 3, 2025

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WASHINGTON — Attorneys for Bob Menendez painted him as a defeated man as they asked a federal court for leniency when sentencing the former senator, who was found guilty last summer on all charges in a sweeping federal corruption case.

As the 71-year-old longtime New Jersey Democrat is set to be sentenced in New York on Jan. 29, Menendez attorneys in a court filing Thursday said the court probation department’s recommended sentence of 12 years in prison “would be draconian — likely a life and death sentence for someone of Bob’s age and condition.”

And even a sentencing guideline range of 21 to 27 months would be “improper,” the attorneys argued, suggesting that the court instead hand down a sentence that relies “heavily on alternatives to incarceration.”

The lawyers argued that the court should consider a sentence that is non-custodial, such as home detention and “rigorous community service,” which would best serve the “ends of justice in this case.”

The attorneys said Menendez has “his long-built reputation in tatters,” noting his resignation from Congress, and said that he has “suffered financial and professional ruin.” They also said he is helping his wife, who was also charged in the case, fight a life-threatening cancer diagnosis ahead of her upcoming trial.

“Senator Menendez has given his life to his country and to his community. With this case, his political and professional careers have ended; his reputation is destroyed; and the latter years of his life are in shambles. He is certain never to commit future offenses,” Menendez’s attorneys wrote.

The attorneys also stressed Menendez’s lengthy career in public office, emphasized instances of him helping people, and outlined the financial ramifications for the former lawmaker if the conviction is upheld. If his conviction holds, Menendez would lose his federal pension and his law license would be revoked, the attorneys reported.

“His state pension and government provided insurance are at risk, too,” according to the court document.

The filing recounts Menendez’s personal, political and family history, including his work in Congress as only the sixth Latino to serve in the Senate, as well as his advocacy for the United States on the international stage.

“As recalled by those close to him and constituents alike, Bob was a champion for his constituents, always lending an ear and a helping hand to improve the lives of not just New Jerseyans, but all Americans,” the filing states.

Last summer, Menendez, the former chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee who had served as a member of Congress for more than three decades, was found guilty on 16 counts, including bribery, extortion and acting as a foreign agent.

The prosecution argued that Menendez put his “power up for sale” and in return raked in high-dollar bribes from New Jersey businessmen in the form of cash, gold and a vehicle.

The prosecution said Menendez, in exchange for bribes, promised to approve military aid to Egypt, to pressure the New Jersey attorney general to disrupt a criminal investigation and to recommend someone for a U.S. attorney post who he thought he could influence to affect a federal case against a real estate developer, among other acts.

At trial, jurors heard from an FBI agent that authorities seized gold bars and about $486,000 in cash during a 2022 search of the New Jersey residence that Menendez shared with his wife. Also at trial, an insurance broker testified that he bribed the senator in an attempt to influence state-level investigations to benefit people close to him.

The jury rejected defense arguments that the government showed no direct evidence that Menendez discussed a bribe and that there were other explanations for the gold bars and cash stockpile that authorities found at the New Jersey residence the senator shared with his wife.

Menendez attorneys, in the sentencing memorandum, said the former senator will appeal his conviction. But they argued that Menendez, despite his conviction, deserves mercy because of “the penalties already imposed, his age, and the lack of a compelling need to impose a custodial sentence.”