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Abeyta v. State3/21/2002
Appeal from the District Court of Fremont County The Honorable Nancy J. Guthrie, Judge
[ ] In this appeal, we are asked to interpret the restitution statutes to determine whether settlement of civil liability claims will extinguish a restitution order imposed against a criminal defendant during sentencing. The district court ruled that a civil liability settlement entered into by Appellant Storm Reall Abeyta and two victims of his criminal conduct did not extinguish the restitution order earlier imposed against him during sentencing for his criminal convictions and denied the petition.
[ ] We affirm the district court's order denying Abeyta's petition to omit the restitution requirement.
ISSUES
[ ] Abeyta presents the following issue for our review:
If a criminal defendant settles, makes payments to his victims and obtains complete releases from them after the court orders him to pay restituion, can the court order him to continue to pay restitution even though the victims would not otherwise be entitled to collect a civil judgment because they executed complete releases?
The State restates the issue as:
Whether the trial court abused its discretion when it did not eliminate but, rather, reduced the restitution by the amount of insurance settlement monies which the victims or their estates received.
FACTS
[ ] In its January 31, 2000, order after arraignment and sentence, the district court found Abeyta guilty of reckless endangering in violation of Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 6-2-504(a) and (c) and sentenced him to one year in the Fremont County Detention Center. Abeyta's guilty plea to the charge of aggravated homicide by a vehicle was deferred pursuant to Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 7-13-301. After he served his one-year sentence on the reckless endangering conviction, Abeyta was sentenced to five years supervised probation subject to specified terms and conditions. He was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $200,624 in accordance with a restitution plan.
[ ] On February 24 and October 13, 2000, in exchange for $25,000 each, the personal representative of the estate of the deceased victim and the injured victim signed releases discharging all civil claims against Abeyta. The parties to those agreements were the insurer, Abeyta's parents, Abeyta, and the injured victims. The State was not a party to the agreement.
[ ] On July 1, 2000, several of the restitution statutes were redesignated and supplemented with additional provisions. 2000 Wyo. Sess. Laws, ch. 90, §§ 1, 2. ("W.S. 7-9-103, 7-9-104, 7-9-109, 7-9-111 and 7-9-113 are amended . . . ."). Among other changes to § 7-9-103, the following section was added:
(f) The defendant shall be given credit against his restitution obligation for payments made to the victim by the defendant's insurer for injuries arising out of the same facts or event. 2000 Wyo. Sess. Laws, supra.
[ ] On October 26, 2000, Abeyta filed a petition to modify the court's order after arraignment and sentence. That petition stated that pursuant to W.R.Cr.P. 39(b), Abeyta sought to modify the restitution condition of probation to omit the restitution requirement because one victim and the other victim's estate had signed releases discharging Abeyta from any further liability. Abeyta's petition asserted that § 7-9-110 entitled him to a discharge of the restitution order based on the releases.
[ ] After a hearing, the district court denied the petition, but did order that pursuant to its discretionary authority under Wyo. Stat. Ann. §§ 7-9-105 and -106, the order of restitution should be reduced by the sum of $50,0
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