### **The Gold-Standard Character Witness Letter Outline**  
**1. HEADER (Formal)**  
- Court name  
- Case number  
- Defendant's full name  
- **Re: People v. [Defendant] | Case No. [XXXXXX]**

**2. OPENING (Credibility Establishment)**  
- Your full name & relation to defendant  
- *Optional:* Brief professional background (if relevant)  
- Purpose statement: *"I write to provide factual character information about [Name]."*  

**3. BODY (3-Part Structure)**  
**A. Foundation of Knowledge**  
- *"I've known [Name] for [X] years as [relationship]..."*  
- Frequency/depth of interactions (e.g., *"weekly visits since 2020"*)  

**B. Specific Observations**  
- **3-5 verifiable examples** of positive conduct:  
  - Parenting: *"Attends all medical appointments"*  
  - Responsibility: *"Has maintained steady employment at [X]"*  
  - Community: *"Volunteers at [place] since [date]"*  
- **Avoid opinions** - Stick to witnessed behaviors  

**C. Incident Context (If Addressing Charges)**  
- *"While I don't minimize the allegations..."*  
- Factual mitigation: *"This occurred during [stress event]"*  
- Demonstrated change: *"Has since completed [program]"*  

**4. CHILD IMPACT (For Family Cases)**  
- *"As [grandparent], I observe that [Child]..."*  
- Neutral third-party observations (e.g., *"Teacher reports [behavior change]"*)  

**5. CLOSING (Neutral Request)**  
- *"I hope the Court will consider this information"*  
- Offer to provide further details  

**6. SIGNATURE**  
- Hand-signed  
- Contact information  