Source: https://www.tdcaa.com/journal/restitution-without-regrets/
Timestamp: 2019-04-24 04:34:11+00:00

Document:
I don’t always get to collect restitution, but when I do, it makes my crime victims happy. The first time a crime victim called to thank me was when she received a $500 restitution check. She was a victim of a criminal mischief case where we were able to order the defendant, her ex-boyfriend, to pay restitution for slashing her tires as a part of his plea. That $500 was what the victim made in a week, and the money helped her repay the loan she had taken out to buy new tires.
If you’re a newer prosecutor, chances are that you handle this type of crime on a daily basis. We know that when we get restitution for our victims, we not only help make them whole but also show them that the criminal justice system actually works. Restitution also benefits defendants because it forces them to recognize the costs associated with their crimes.
The Code of Criminal Procedure also allows the court to order the defendant to reimburse third parties for payments made to victims.12 Eligible third parties include insurance companies as well as the Crime Victim’s Compensation (CVC) fund. Prosecutors can get a statement of what CVC paid to a particular victim by checking with the victim assistance coordinator or contacting the Texas Attorney General’s office by email at [email protected] or by phone at 800/983-9933.
Some defense attorneys and judges are under the impression that a victim’s out-of-pocket expenses are the only ones eligible for reimbursement, such as co-pays and deductibles, but that is not correct. Third parties who paid the victim’s bills, such as hospitals and insurance companies, can receive restitution.13 Once a prosecutor verifies the amounts paid by CVC or insurance companies, the court or the prosecutor can prepare a judgment or restitution order which states the entity that is owed restitution and the amount to be paid. Legally speaking, restitution payable to an entity such as CVC or an insurance company is no different from ordering restitution payable to a person; however, a prosecutor should include reference to any claim numbers so that the money ends up in the correct account.
How is the amount ­determined?
Be aware that it is within the court’s discretion to order complete restitution, partial restitution, or no restitution to a victim.22 If judges do not order restitution or order partial restitution, they must state their reasons on the record.
Fortunately, if restitution is ordered but the amount or terms are not factually supported, the correct procedure is to remand the case back to the trial court for a restitution hearing.28 The defendant is not entitled to a new sentencing hearing; rather, the purpose is to give the prosecution a second opportunity to establish the factual basis for the restitution amount.29 In practice, such a re-hearing rarely happens because restitution is negotiated as a condition of the plea and I always get the defendant to stipulate to the restitution and waive his right to appeal as a part of the plea. The only times I have had to participate in a rehearing on restitution was when the court ordered restitution be paid to a person not eligible to receive it. It is significantly easier to do the restitution correctly the first time around because witnesses become unavailable as time goes on.
What if the defendant can’t pay?
Many prosecutors will not order restitution in jail or prison cases thinking there is no way the defendant can pay while sitting in a cell. While it’s true that the defendant can claim an inability to pay, restitution should still be ordered.
We can put victims first by making defendants pay restitution. After speaking to victims and victim assistance coordinators in my county, I’ve learned that crime victims get some closure and satisfaction just by knowing the restitution was ordered, even if it may not ever be received. Though everyone agrees restitution is important, it’s not something we think about unless something goes wrong, such as the defendant contesting the restitution condition in his probation as invalid, and by the appellate stage, it may be too late to fix. By understanding how restitution works in practice, we ensure our victims have the best chance in recovering the money they deserve.
1 Texas Const. art. I, §30.
2 Tex. Code Crim. Proc. art 42.037.
3 See Lemos v. State, 27 S.W.3d 42, 49 (Tex. App.—San Antonio 2000, pet. ref’d).
4 Uresti v. State, 98 S.W.3d 321, 338 (Tex. App.—Houston [1st Dist.] 2003, no pet.) (“expenses incurred by the Houston Police Department in its investigation of appellant were not sustained as the result of being the victim of a crime”).
5 Tex. Code Crim. Proc. art. 42.12(a)(19) (“Reimburse a law enforcement agency for the analysis, storage, or disposal of raw materials, controlled substances, chemical precursors, drug paraphernalia, or other materials seized in connection with the offense”).
6 Gordon v. State, 707 S.W.2d 626, 629-30 (Tex. Crim. App. 1986) (“a finding to order appellant to pay the expenses occasioned by that death would be a denial of due process, tantamount to penalizing appellant for an offense of which he was acquitted”).
7 Lemos, 27 S.W.3d at 46 (“the death of an aggravated robbery victim is a consequence of aggravated robbery for which the defendant is criminally responsible”).
8 Tex. Code Crim. Proc. art. 42.037(d).
9 Campbell v. State, 5 S.W.3d 693 (Tex. Crim. App. 1999) (“Here the appellant stipulated to a list of his victims and the amounts that he had stolen from them. There is no dispute that the appellant was criminally responsible for the thefts to which he pleaded no contest”).
10 Martin v. State, 874 S.W.2d 674, 679-80 (Tex. Crim. App. 1994) (“We do not intend that this opinion prevents an award of restitution to the extent agreed upon by the parties in a plea agreement, so long as the amounts agreed to and the persons to whom restitution is to be paid under the agreement have a factual basis in the record and are just.”); see also Tex. Penal Code §12.45 (“A person may, with the consent of the attorney for the State, admit during the sentencing hearing his guilt of one or more unadjudicated offenses and request the court to take each into account in determining sentence for the offense or offenses of which he stands adjudged guilty”).
11 Ex parte Lewis, 892 S.W.2d 4, 6 (Tex. Crim. App. 1994) (“the Legislature intended to limit the discretion of the trial court in ordering restitution payments and accordingly limited restitution to the victim of the offense for which the defendant was convicted”).
12 Tex. Code Crim. Proc. art. 42.037.
13 Tex. Code Crim. Proc. art. 42.037(f); Flores v. State, 513 S.W.2d 66, 69 (Tex. Crim. App. 1974) (affirming restitution order to insurance company that paid medical expenses).
14 Tex. Code Crim. Proc. art. 42.037(k).
15 Campbell v. State, 5 S.W.3d 693 (Tex. Crim. App. 1999).
17 Jackson v. State, 720 S.W.2d 153 (Tex. App.—Houston [14th Dist.] 1986, pet. ref’d).
18 Tex. Code Crim. Proc. art. 42.037(b)(1)(B)(i)-(ii).
19 In the Matter of J.R., 907 S.W.2d 107 (Tex. App.—Austin 1995, no pet.) (holding that as long as there was proof of the amount of expense incurred, there was no need for an affidavit stating the expenses were reasonable).
20 Campbell v. State, 5 S.W.3d 693 (Tex. Crim. App. 1999) (rejecting the appellant’s argument that the amount of restitution that can be ordered for a theft conviction is restricted by the upper limit of the property-value range of theft).
21 Urias v. State, 987 S.W.2d 613 (Tex. App.—Austin 1999, no pet).
22 Tex. Code Crim. Proc. art. 42.037(a).
23 Tex. Code Crim. Proc. art. 42.01, §1(25).
24 Tex. Code Crim. Proc. art. 42.03, §1(a) (“sentence shall be pronounced in the defendant’s presence”).
25 See Sauceda v. State, 309 S.W.3d 767, 769 (Tex. App.—Amarillo 2010, pet. ref’d).
26 See Bailey v. State, 160 S.W.3d 11, 16–18 (Tex. Crim. App. 2004) (Cochran, J., concurring) (“The trial court may not, however, alter or modify the terms and conditions of probation to add a restitution order which was never made orally in open court and in the defendant’s presence at the sentencing hearing”).
27 See Cox v. State, 445 S.W.2d 200, 201 (Tex. Crim. App. 1969); Simpson v. State, 772 S.W.2d 276, 280 (Tex. App.—Amarillo 1989, no pet).
28 See Barton v. State, 21 S.W.3d 287, 290 (Tex. Crim. App. 2000).
29 Beedy v. State, 250 S.W.3d 107, 112–13 (Tex. Crim. App. 2008).
30 Tex. Code Crim. Proc. art. 42.037(e).
31 Bailey v. State, 160 S.W.3d 11, 15 (Tex. Crim. App. 2004).
33 Cabla v. State, 6 S.W.3d 543, 546 (Tex. Crim. App. 1999); also see Rudy Ramirez & Elizabeth Dondlinger, “Enforcing Restitution,” in The Prosecutor, Vol. 39 No. 6 (2009).
34 See Tex. Gov’t Code §501.014(e).
35 Tex. Code Crim. Proc. art. 42.037(h).
36 Tex. Code Crim. Proc. art. 42.037(p)(2)(A)-(B).
37 Tex. Code Crim. Proc. arts. 42.22, 56.01 (restitution liens can be filed for victims of sexual assault, kidnapping, aggravated robbery, trafficking of persons, or injury to a child, elderly individual, or disabled individual or to whomever has suffered personal injury or death as a result of the criminal conduct of another).
38 43 Tex. Admin. Code §217.7.
39 Pennington v. State, 902 S.W.2d 752, 754 (Tex. App.—Fort Worth 1995, pet. ref’d) (“The language [of Tex. Code. Crim. Proc. art. 42.12] does not mandate that the payments be within the financial means of the probationers”).

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