ST. THOMAS — Calvert White, the former Sports, Parks and Recreation commissioner convicted on bribery and fraud charges, is asking a federal judge for leniency ahead of his January 22 sentencing, saying he accepts full responsibility for the situation he now faces.
“I do not write to excuse my actions, but rather to ask that you see the entirety of my life, my service, and my character before making your final decision,” White wrote in a letter addressed to Judge Mark Kearney. “I have made a mistake, one that I deeply regret, but I am still someone who believes in service, accountability and growth.”
The letter was one of a dozen character letters attached to a sentencing memorandum filed by defense attorney Clive Rivers, which recommended a sentence of between one year and nine months to two years and three months in prison for White, a range that is more than a decade shorter than the sentence sought by federal prosecutors.
READ MORE: DOJ seeks 12 years in prison for Calvert White, nine for Benjamin Hendricks after bribery conviction
White’s father, former senator Celestino White Sr., wrote he was heartbroken, that his son had made a “crucial mistake,” and that he was remorseful.
“I plea for a sentence that does not include incarceration in favor of home confinement,” the former senator wrote, asking the court to consider his son’s family responsibilities, community service, and personal history.
He went on to request that if the judge must incarcerate his son that it would be at a minimum security facility where he would be allowed to self-surrender to at his own expense, in order to avoid a “holding pattern” of being incarcerated in Puerto Rico for months until the Federal Bureau of Prisons determined his fate.
Calvert White’s letter to Kearney accepting responsibility was dated August 11, 2025, just four days after his defense attorney filed a motion seeking a new trial arguing that Kearney improperly answered a jury question and therefore compromised Calvert White’s right to a fair trial. Kearney denied the motion on November 14, 2025 following extensive oral arguments.
READ MORE: Calvert White’s attorney files motion for new trial, claims judge improperly answered jury question
In the sentencing memorandum filed last week, Calvert White’s attorney objected to several aspects of the United States Probation Office’s Presentence Investigation Report, including the government’s calculation of financial loss used to determine the advisory sentencing range.
“The government submitted the aforesaid imprisonment range although it only alleged evidence of ‘actual’ loss in the amount of $5,000,” the memorandum stated, arguing that the government improperly relied on speculative or “intended” loss figures rather than actual financial loss.
The sentencing memorandum also objects to an enhancement for an alleged leadership role in the offense, contending that there was no evidence Calvert White exercised supervisory or managerial control over his co-defendant, government contractor Benjamin Hendricks, whose attorney filed a separate memorandum requesting a prison term of three years and one month to three years and 10 months.
After Calvert White’s attorney filed his sentencing memorandum, prosecutors filed a motion asking the judge to order the forfeiture of $5,000 in bribe proceeds, saying that the money represents funds traceable to Calvert White’s convictions for public corruption.
READ MORE: Prosecutors seek forfeiture of $5,000 in bribe proceeds paid to Calvert White ahead of sentencing
Verne Hodge, a former justice of the Virgin Islands Supreme Court, also wrote to the judge on Calvert White’s behalf and urged the court to consider the lightest sentence possible, noting that he had “witnessed firsthand the transformative power of leniency, accountability, and community support.”
Others who wrote letters of support include Calvert White’s mother, siblings, his adult son, his partner of over 10 years, Mia Felix, and friend and former colleague Derek Heyliger, as well as retired VIPD officials Raymond Hyndman and Hugo Hodge Sr. Kisha Christian, owner of Neighborhood Pharmacy, Neville Amey president of STT/STJ Little League Baseball, and Jennifer Ashby, Creator and Director of Events for Paradise Jam, also transmitted letters to the judge.
Calvert White and Hendricks are scheduled to be sentenced in separate proceedings next week.
