Shape your arguments with facts and description

You will not convince the court that the defendant was a cruel person, by simply telling the court that he was “cruel”. That is an empty conclusory statement. You got to lead the court to that conclusion by showing, not telling.

Instead of saying: “The defendant was cruel,"

Say: "For about 18 hours everyday, the defendant confined the victim to a small room, two by one meter square. There was barely any space for her to walk. The room had a small window but no natural light could come through. The victim slept on a fine mattress on the concrete floor and on cold nights, she used to shiver under the cover of a thread-like blanket. He would only let her out once or twice a day to visit the toilet.”

With descriptive narrative, the judge will naturally be led to the conclusion that the defendant was indeed cruel.