Menendez’s lawyers seek lenient sentence, saying conviction made him a ‘national punchline’
Associated PressNEW YORK — Lawyers for former New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez are urging a judge to be lenient at his sentencing later this month for his conviction on bribery charges, saying the ordeal has made him a “national punchline” despite a lifetime of good deeds that have saved lives. The 71-year-old Menendez was convicted in July of 16 corruption charges brought by prosecutors who asserted that he used his power in the Senate to do favors that benefited three New Jersey businessmen. The lawyers told Judge Sidney H. Stein that Menendez has fallen on hard times since he was charged in the case in 2023, losing the Senate seat he held for 18 years, along with most of his “once broad circle of friends and political allies.” “Unsurprisingly, Senator Menendez’s conviction has rendered him a national punchline and stripped him of every conceivable personal, professional, and financial benefit,” they wrote. They noted that the Probation Department calculated federal sentencing guidelines as calling for a sentence as high as 24 years to 30 years behind bars, although Probation recommended a dozen years in prison, which the Menendez lawyers characterized as “draconian.” They said properly calculated federal guidelines would actually call for a roughly two-year prison term and even that would be too much punishment.