Worried about the safety of his mother, Charles "Charlie" Tan traveled home armed with a shotgun in February 2015 to confront his father and "things went terribly wrong," Tan's attorneys say in a pre-sentencing court filing.

While the filing, and statements from Tan himself, do not say that Tan fatally shot his father in February 2015, these court papers do not point a finger at other possible suspects.

Tan himself writes in a letter that his father's abuse against his mother caused him to leave Cornell University in February 2015, and return to his Pittsford home with a shotgun purchased in Cortland County.

"All I knew was that my mother was unusually defeated, and repeatedly told me that (Tan's father) was going to kill her," Tan wrote in an Oct. 24 letter to the federal judge who will decide his sentence. "I felt like there was no other option, that I had to protect her. Rather than digest the situation, and other possible alternatives, I acted on impulse, leading to my series of immature and irrational decisions."

Tan was earlier accused of the shotgun murder of his father, Liang "Jim" Tan. However, in November 2015, after a jury failed to reach a verdict, a judge threw out the indictment against Tan. The judge, James Piampiano, determined that there was not enough evidence to support the criminal charges. An appellate court decided it could not reverse the decision, even though the court said Piampiano's decision was clearly wrong.

Last year Tan was charged with a role in the illegal purchase of the shotgun used in the homicide, and in June he pleaded guilty in federal court in Syracuse to the gun-related crimes. He is scheduled to be sentenced Nov. 19.

Prosecutors say that federal sentencing guidelines, which are recommendations, call for a 25-year sentence. In their pre-sentencing papers, Tan's lawyers say Tan deserves a much lesser sentence, and recommend a sentence of five years.

"He is not a threat to society," the defense attorneys, Brian DeCarolis and James Nobles, write in their filing. "He was a 19-year-old kid caught up in a bad situation. Charlie is still a young man with enormous potential for a bright, successful future."

Tan writes in his letter that, when out of prison, he wants to establish an "afterschool facility" for adolescents to "engage in a mixture of academic workshops and sports training."

Days before the homicide

When arrested and accused of murder in February 2015, Tan, a popular graduate from Pittsford Mendon High School, received support from friends totaling tens of thousands of dollars to help with bail and legal costs.

In their court papers filed in federal court this week, Tan's attorneys include letters from many of those same friends — many talking about Tan's charitable nature and decency.

Summarizing many of the letters, his attorneys write: "He excelled at everything he touched, and has a unique way of leading and causing people to do the right thing just by setting an example."

The court papers say that Tan grew up in an abusive household, and that an alleged attack by his father against his mother in January 2015 convinced him that he had to intervene. He did not know that his mother had been talking about divorce, the court papers say

On Jan. 28, 2015, Tan's mother, Qing "Jean" Tan, called 911, saying that her husband had assaulted her. Deputies responded, and saw that Qing's neck was red, but she said she did not want her husband arrested but wanted him out of the house. He had left, she said, and deputies did not pursue criminal charges.

She then called Charles Tan, who was a student at Cornell, and told him what happened, according to court papers. Tan then called his father.

"Over the course of a nine-minute call, Charlie confronts Jim about his drinking, his violence, and his treatment of his mother," the papers say. "Jim responds with it's none of his business, to 'stay out of it ... I can do what I want ... even kill her ... you can't stop me,' further leading Charlie to believe this time is different."

In his letter to the judge, Tan writes, "After talking to my father, it was clear that he was still agitated. When I told him that he couldn't put his hands on her, he snapped. He told me to mind my business, and if she pissed him off again he'll kill her."

Charles Tan talked to his mother over the coming days then, with the shotgun, went home on Feb. 5.

"Charlie believed his mom's life was in grave danger at the hands of his father," his attorneys write. "When he got home, the situation escalated. He stated to police that 'I had to do it, he was going to kill my mom.' "

Allegations of abuse

On Nov. 19, U.S. District Judge Frederick James Scullin Jr. is scheduled to decide Tan's sentence. Prosecutors say that Tan should not be credited with remorse and acceptance of responsibility for his crimes without admitting to the homicide. Liang Tan was shot twice in the chest then once in the face.

Even if there was abuse in the home, Assistant U.S. Attorney Lisa Fletcher said in her court filings, Tan's actions were premeditated, and he should have looked for other ways to protect his mother.

Tan's lawyers contend that the homicide — regardless of who was responsible — was the end result of years of Liang Tan's abuse and controlling behavior. The attorneys write that:

• Tan's parents were wed in China in an arranged marriage. They moved from China, to Ireland, to Canada, and then to Pittsford, where Tan started his own high-tech company, Canandaigua-based Dynamax Inc.

• While in Canada, police once intervened after a physician reported "bruising" on Qing "Jean" Tan's body. She and her two sons — Charles Tan, then 3, and Jeffrey Tan, then 5 — spent time in a shelter, then returned home.

• Once they moved to the U.S., the abuse continued, with Liang "JIm" Tan making sure the signs of his abuse — namely, the "bruises he inflicted on his wife" — were concealed.

• There was also financial abuse, with Liang "Jim" Tan controlling finances and, if angry, shutting off telephones and heat.

• Because of the household tensions and violence, Charles Tan spent more time with friends as he grew older. "The fear he experienced at the hands of his father, along with the coping he learned to avoid his wrath" caused Tan to "become the warm, gregarious, selfless young man he is."

• In 2015, Qing "Jean" Tan had been talking to her son, Jeffrey, about a divorce, but Charles Tan did not know of the conversations. Jeffrey Tan was then in Colorado, where he also was when Liang "Jim" Tan was killed.

• The January 2015 incident convinced Charles Tan that his father might kill his mother. "With his brother in Colorado, Charlie felt it was his time to protect his mom in his brother's absence. He was a young man, unaware of the recent conversations between his mom and brother about divorce, terrified of what could come next."

Tan has been jailed since his September 2017 arrest on the gun charges. The time jailed will count against his sentence.

Whenever released from prison, he is expected to be deported to Canada, which is where he has citizenship.

The Democrat and Chronicle has reached out to Tan's defense lawyers for comment. Prosecutor Lisa Fletcher declined to comment.

GCRAIG@Gannett.com

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