Mrs.

Luella Bates Washington Jones

297 W 137th St #C
New York, NY 10030 Harlem
(537) 420-0432

Date: December 16, 1958

To the honorable Judge (last name),

I work late hours in a hotel beauty shop in the city street of Harlem. There I meet the
fourteen or fifteen, frail boy Roger. I respect that the District of Columbia has charged Roger
with theft. I am writing to offer a glimpse of who Roger is and a complete picture of the story
that night.
First, I instructed him to return my purse, which allowed Roger to make his mistake right.
And by taking Roger to my home, learning his name, making him wash his soiled face, and
feeding him dinner, I learned the reason for his actions. At first, I thought that hunger lay
behind his thievery, but Roger corrected my mistake, explaining he had wanted “a pair of blue
suede shoes.”. I freely offered him the money for the shoes, establishing my confidence in Roger
to make good use of my investment in him. As well, warning Roger away from such action in the
future.
While in my house, Roger had several opportunities to abscond with my purse, which was on
the daybed. And even offer a helping hand to the store. Roger, who resides in the inner-city, is a
frail, desperate teenager who does not have adult supervision or care and lives in poverty but is a
polite, docile adolescent. Thank you for taking the time to learn a little bit more about Roger. I
am available to confirm the facts in this letter as necessary.

Sincerely,

Luella Bates Washington Jones