Federal Restitution Part 3: Managing Restitution Obligations After Prison Release

Okay, so this is part 3 of federal restitution. So you want to know what you can do. Well, in my discussions with a fraud litigation unit here in South Carolina, I was informed that they might be able to assist somebody in relieving part of the lien in order to allow someone to purchase a house. You have to make your case to them though to see if they're willing to help, and this is something that the victims would have to approve approve of, but they may, in some limited circumstances, work with you to help you make that sort of a purchase. But keep in mind that the victims are going to have to be on board. The real problem here, in my mind, is that these restitution orders, the government enforcement of them, really makes it difficult for people who have been convicted of crimes to ever really get their lives back. In many cases, the victims of these crimes are banks or insurance companies. Entities that have priced risk into their offerings. So for some of these cases, the bank or the insurance company just write off their losses, but the person on the other side will be left without any ability to even own a home. It's difficult to see the societal value in having this kind of punishment regime that imposes such harsh conditions on people who have already served their time for their crimes. So what is the takeaway here? First of all, it may be possible to get some limited relief if you need to. You should call and hire an attorney to help you negotiate with the Financial Fraud Unit to see what kind of accommodations can be made to help you achieve your financial goal. Keep in mind that it may not be a simple process, but you won't know if the government's willing to play ball until you try. Secondly, I think it's a cautionary tale for defendants to know that this is what the reality of the situation is., and they need to sufficiently litigate the restitution obligations on the front end before the district court judge signs the order of restitution. You may need to retain your own expert to challenge the government's assessment of restitution. You definitely need an attorney who is cognizant of these issues and who is doing everything he or she can to make sure that the restitution order in your case is one that will not leave you destitute for the rest of your life. Restitution obligations are no joke. I hope this has been helpful. Like I said, I get calls on this issue all the time. Truthfully, I think this is an area that is fertile for a legislative fix. When we discuss criminal justice reform, we also need to be talking about the financial burdens that are imposed on people who have served their time but who need to get back to their lives and provide for their children, and their families. If you have any questions about this or anything else related to federal criminal defense or white-collar crime, please give us a call at 803-331-3421, and someone at our office will be more than happy to happy— help you. Thank you.