Verb (used with object) : to mitigate a punishment.    From Dictionary.com. 

They, in turn, will lay out what they call mitigating factors against death penalty.    From Wordnik.com.  [CNN Transcript Apr 10, 2006] Reference

BEHAR: I know but I worry about the defense coming up with what they call mitigating circumstances.    From Wordnik.com.  [CNN Transcript Nov 18, 2009] Reference

They are necessary precautions in mitigating the threat that the image poses.    From Wordnik.com.  [Shelley, Medusa, and the Perils of Ekphrasis] Reference

How much of the cost is in mitigating the load necessary to carry snow pack on a flat roof.    From Wordnik.com.  [ASAP HOUSE: House About Saving a Planet | Inhabitat] Reference

That's partly because many Republicans share a common interest in mitigating the rise of Islamist terrorism.    From Wordnik.com.  [In Southeast Asia, Democrats' Losses Prompt Worries] Reference

First, the study suggests that schools can play a huge role in mitigating the effects of poverty on student achievement.    From Wordnik.com.  [Alan Gottlieb: Fighting Over Common Ground] Reference

First is the immense importance of the Geneva Conventions on humane treatment of prisoners in mitigating the human costs of war.    From Wordnik.com.  [Archive 2005-04-01] Reference

Generally, he blamed the tragedy on his own inexperience, but whether or not he was successful in mitigating his responsibility is not stated in the record. 86.    From Wordnik.com.  [Gutenber-e Help Page] Reference

Giving the Oncler ownership of the truffula trees does not protect them because Oncler has no interest in mitigating the harm to the environment he is causing.    From Wordnik.com.  [The Volokh Conspiracy » The Lesson of the Lorax:] Reference

Environmental organizations were quick to point out the involvement from the start in mitigating the disaster by local fishermen, the tourism sector and the local population.    From Wordnik.com.  [Galápagos National Park & Galápagos Marine Resources Reserve, Ecuador] Reference

Defense lawyers plan to call mitigating evidence about O'Reilly's background.    From Wordnik.com.  [Local News RSS from The Detroit News] Reference

GERAGOS: Absolutely because all of those things go towards what are called the mitigating factors.    From Wordnik.com.  [CNN Transcript Apr 28, 2003] Reference

In the end, she said, every question has at its foundation the idea of mitigating risk and magnifying value.    From Wordnik.com.  [Philly.com - Latest Videos]

I will say, though, that there is very strong evidence that her mental illness would be what's call a mitigating factor in Texas.    From Wordnik.com.  [CNN Transcript Mar 13, 2002] Reference

GERAGOS: Here in California, that is a standard operating procedure is to have the defense present what's called mitigating evidence.    From Wordnik.com.  [CNN Transcript Apr 28, 2003] Reference

The defense's task in the next -- in the next part of the case is to show what is called mitigating factors, reasons why the death penalty is not appropriate.    From Wordnik.com.  [CNN Transcript Apr 3, 2006] Reference

Maybe there's some kind of mitigating circumstance.    From Wordnik.com.  [The 5th Horseman]

Edited to remove incorrect usage of the word "mitigating".    From Wordnik.com.  [Peace, order and good government, eh?: November 2004 Archives] Reference

He was searching for some kind of mitigating explanation, possibly out of a surrogate guilt.    From Wordnik.com.  [A Big Boy Did It and Ran Away]

HARRIS: What are the kind of mitigating factors making the job difficult for the firefighters right now to get a complete handle on this?.    From Wordnik.com.  [CNN Transcript Apr 23, 2007] Reference

And yes, I did actually just link you to the meanings of the words..... just so you know and so I dont get people going: "Whats a 'mitigating' and can I buy one on ebay?".    From Wordnik.com.  [Archive 2008-01-01] Reference

But even this "mitigating" factor is offset by unabated oil price manipulation under the deregulation law.    From Wordnik.com.  [Bulatlat] Reference

In particular, they fear that "mitigating," or atoning for riverfront development, would cost them untold millions.    From Wordnik.com.  [Dallas Business News - Local Dallas News | Dallas Business Journal] Reference

My brother is also a good example of the kind of mitigating circumstances that sometimes attend being grossly overweight.    From Wordnik.com.  [The Guardian World News] Reference

The perception that race / culture based protected classes have "mitigating" circumstances and justified hatred for American society / culture.    From Wordnik.com.  [Latest Articles] Reference

In his letter, Pomponio lauds Arch Coal's efforts to create artificial ditches as replacements for natural headwaters, a bogus "mitigating" effort that.    From Wordnik.com.  [The Full Feed from HuffingtonPost.com] Reference

Suppose hypothetically that a death row inmate claims on state habeas that his lawyer was ineffective for not introducing the "mitigating" evidence that he is a sociopath.    From Wordnik.com.  [Crime and Consequences] Reference

Dodd-Frank mandates credit-rating reforms such as mitigating conflicts of interest, holding credit-raters accountable for their ratings and reducing investor reliance on them.    From Wordnik.com.  [Yahoo! News: Business - Opinion] Reference

Issues that are commonly shared, such as mitigating geologic hazard areas or verifying sufficient water and sanitation for a new development, will be folded into the master plan.    From Wordnik.com.  [The Denver Post YourHub.com Stories] Reference

Change is at the heart of any innovation initiative, but complex innovation such as mitigating the effect of energy use on the earth's climate requires extreme change management.    From Wordnik.com.  [Forbes.com: News] Reference

In this case, skull thickness is a mitigating factor.    From Wordnik.com.  [A Question Of Anti-Semitism] Reference

Retribution offers the hope of at least mitigating the sense of victimhood.    From Wordnik.com.  [The Toll On Our Psyche] Reference

Supporters counter that a warmer climate may also bring fewer storms, mitigating the rising levels.    From Wordnik.com.  [Venice: Saving A Sinking Place] Reference

All parties need to work to extend globalization's advantages to the poor, while mitigating the risks.    From Wordnik.com.  [The Escape Route] Reference

Then again, what isn't spoken, and is perhaps mitigating, is that these investments also had a strategic purpose.    From Wordnik.com.  [The Microsoft Solution] Reference

But the West seems to be playing into his hands instead of mitigating the influence of oil by ignoring his rhetoric.    From Wordnik.com.  [Addicted to Oil?] Reference

That's mitigating the usual virtuous circle where spending creates jobs and those people spend and that creates jobs and so on.    From Wordnik.com.  [Two economists say in new paper that TARP worked] Reference

A higher cost-benefit-ratio for fighting AIDS, etc., does not preclude the benefits of mitigating climate change from exceeding costs.    From Wordnik.com.  [MAIL CALL] Reference