Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) has a new reason for having a treasure trove of gold and cash that law enforcement officers found during a raid on his home.

Menendez’s attorneys argued that “generational trauma and a habit to hoard reserves” were the reasons the senator had the stash as he faces allegations that he sold his influence and received large amounts of cash and gold in return.

His defense team said the $480,000 and 13 gold bars found at his home were there because he has a habit rooted in psychological trauma from his father’s suicide and a family history of confiscated cash in Cuba.

A psychologist is expected to testify about the claims, and the defense added Menendez’s trauma from his father’s death was exacerbated because he stopped paying his father’s gambling debts shortly before.

The hoard of cash and gold is viewed as a “coping mechanism” that Menendez has said was for “emergencies.” The gold was worth an additional $100,000, according to the indictment.

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Prosecutors have denounced Menendez’s attorneys’ call for a psychologist, saying Dr. Karen Rosenbaum’s “explanation of why Menendez stored cash in his home appears to be little more than an impermissible attempt to offer hearsay statements of the defendant, and to seek to engender sympathy based on his family background, in the guise of expert testimony.”

Menendez’s trial is scheduled to start on May 13, and his wife will face a separate trial. If convicted, he could resign and pick his successor for his Senate seat. Menendez, his wife, and two business partners also involved have all pleaded not guilty.