According to the Examiner, more than 100 people wrote to District Court Judge Ellen Huvelle vouching for his character, including high-profile Post reporter Brigid Schulte. She described him as an "extraordinary" and "tortured" soul who was raped early in his life and kept that trauma a secret. Malakoff, who—according to this bio—lives in Alexandria with his wife and three children, says the rape occurred under the Taft Bridge in Rock Creek Park. A childhood friend remembers the rape happening to a boy they were with.

Among 150 images of child porn found on the computer of the editor and former correspondent was a video of a preteen girl being raped by her father, according to a court document. The woman, now 19, also submitted a letter and asked that it be read in court.