Burglar must repay victim for time in court

Bob Egelko

Chronicle Staff Writer

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

(09-28) 16:36 PDT SAN FRANCISCO -- In a broad interpretation of a law requiring criminals to make restitution to their victims, a state appeals court has ordered a Northern California burglar to repay a homeowner for the wages he gave up by attending every court hearing in the case.

The court, observing that burglary can make people feel they are unsafe in their own homes, said Jason Lee Moore owes something to the victim who attempted to heal his psyche by attending all 50 hours of court proceedings.

To be exact, Moore owes the man $6,250.

Moore was sentenced to 10 years, eight months in prison for breaking into a doctor's home in Redding and stealing items in February 2008. The doctor wasn't a witness to the burglary and attended Moore's pretrial hearings and two-day trial on his own.

The Third District Court of Appeal in Sacramento said the doctor's lost pay, calculated at $125 an hour, was covered by a state law that requires criminals to compensate their victims for all economic losses caused by the crime.

"A victim's attendance at trial cannot be characterized as a paid vacation," Presiding Justice Arthur Scotland said in the 3-0 ruling, issued Wednesday. In this case, he said, "the victim felt that his children's sense of sanctuary and safety were stolen" and that going to court would help him heal.

Scotland noted a ruling last year that upheld restitution to a murder victim's parents for the time they lost at work while attending the trial of their son's killer. That principle isn't limited to murder cases, he said, but applies to crimes in which the victims are psychologically harmed.

Moore's lawyer, Richard Fitzer, said Monday that he would appeal.

It's reasonable to order compensation to crime victims for the cost of attending a trial, Fitzer said, but the court should exclude the cost of attending routine hearings.

"I can see why a victim of a burglary would want to come to the actual trial and sentencing, but why would you want to come to pretrial motions?" Fitzer said. "There's nothing to limit the amount of money they seek to get."

Moore is broke, he said, and will have a hard time paying restitution after his release.

The state has a compensation fund, supported by criminals' fines, that partially reimburses victims of violent crimes for their financial losses.

Deputy Attorney General Paul O'Connor said the ruling was a helpful precedent. Even though no one was physically injured in the burglary, he said, "it shows there were victims."

LINK TO RULING:

http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/opinions/documents/C060618.PDF