What Is a Federal Target Letter — And What Should You Do if You Get One?

At Deandra Grant Law, Attorney James Lee Bright has handled numerous pre-indictment federal matters over his 25+ year career. Lee understands that the period between receiving a target letter and a potential indictment is the most critical window in a federal case and often the only opportunity to influence whether charges are filed at all.

The Three Categories: Target, Subject, and Witness

The U.S. Attorney’s Manual classifies individuals involved in federal grand jury investigations into three categories:

• Target: A person as to whom the prosecutor or the grand jury has substantial evidence linking them to the commission of a crime. If you receive a target letter, you are in the most serious category.
• Subject: A person whose conduct is within the scope of the grand jury’s investigation. A subject may or may not become a target as the investigation progresses.
• Witness: A person who has information relevant to the investigation but is not suspected of criminal conduct.

The distinction matters enormously. A target letter means the government has already built a substantial case against you. The investigation is not preliminary. It is advanced.

What a Target Letter Typically Contains

A target letter generally identifies the investigation in general terms (often by the statute being investigated, such as wire fraud, drug trafficking, or tax evasion), informs you that you are a target, advises you of your Fifth Amendment right to refuse to testify, invites you to appear before the grand jury (which is almost never advisable), and provides contact information for the assigned Assistant United States Attorney (AUSA).

The letter will not tell you the specific evidence the government has, who else is being investigated, when the grand jury will vote on an indictment, or the specific charges being considered. This information asymmetry is exactly why you need an experienced federal defense attorney immediately.

What You Should Do Immediately

• Contact a federal criminal defense attorney before doing anything else. Do not contact the AUSA yourself. Do not respond to the letter without legal representation. Lee Bright handles pre-indictment federal matters and can begin protecting your interests immediately.
• Do not destroy any documents, emails, texts, or electronic files. The moment you receive a target letter, you have constructive knowledge of the investigation. Destroying evidence after receiving a target letter is obstruction of justice — a separate federal crime that carries its own prison sentence and dramatically increases your sentencing exposure.
• Do not discuss the letter or the investigation with anyone except your attorney. Conversations with friends, family, business partners, and employees are not privileged. Co-workers and associates may already be cooperating with the government.
• Do not agree to a voluntary interview or proffer session without attorney guidance. The government may invite you to “tell your side of the story.” This can be an effective defense tool in the right circumstances, but it carries significant risks that must be evaluated by an experienced federal attorney.

What Your Attorney Can Do During the Pre-Indictment Window

The period between a target letter and a potential indictment is the defense’s most valuable window. An experienced federal attorney can:

• Contact the AUSA to learn as much as possible about the scope and direction of the investigation
• Present exculpatory evidence or context that the government may not have considered
• Negotiate a pre-indictment resolution, including potentially a deferred prosecution agreement or a plea to reduced charges that avoids the most severe mandatory minimums
• Prepare the client for potential indictment, including bail strategy and mitigation
• In some cases, persuade the government not to indict at all

Lee has successfully intervened at the pre-indictment stage to prevent charges from being filed. Not every case allows for this outcome, but the opportunity is lost entirely if the client waits until after indictment to retain an attorney.

The Grand Jury Process

Federal grand juries consist of 16 to 23 citizens who hear evidence presented by the government and vote on whether to issue an indictment. The standard for indictment is probable cause — a far lower standard than the beyond-a-reasonable-doubt standard required for conviction. Grand jury proceedings are one-sided: the defense does not present evidence, cross-examine witnesses, or even attend. An old legal maxim holds that a prosecutor can “indict a ham sandwich” and while that overstates it, the reality is that grand juries indict in the vast majority of cases presented to them.

This is why the pre-indictment window matters so much. Once the grand jury votes, the indictment is issued, and the case moves to the arraignment and trial phases. The opportunity for early intervention is gone.

Contact Deandra Grant Law

If you are under investigation or have been charged with a federal offense, contact Deandra Grant Law for a free, confidential consultation with Attorney James Lee Bright. Lee has more than 25 years of federal trial experience and is admitted to practice in all four federal districts in Texas, the District of Columbia, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, and the United States Supreme Court.