House ponders crime restitution reform [Topeka Capital Journal (KS)]

A House committee gathered testimony Tuesday on a bill that would allow victims of crimes to seek restitution from perpetrators for increases in insurance costs attributable to the offense.

Rep. Pat Colloton, a Leawood Republican and chairwoman of the House Corrections and Juvenile Justice Committee, said the proposed statute was in response to a Kansas appellate court ruling.

In that case, defendant Adam Hand entered a guilty plea to stealing a big-screen television from a homeowner.

The owner filed a claim with his insurance company, which charged him a $250 deductible and imposed an annual surcharge of $345 for three years because of the theft.

A judge ordered restitution for both the deductible and the annual surcharge, but the appellate court found current state law didn't allow judges to issue that type of order. That prevented the plaintiff from obtaining restitution from Hand for insurance costs tied to the theft.

Under House Bill 2488, judges would have authority to order restitution for an increase in premiums.

"We wanted to provide a statute that might make (it) a possibility," Colloton said.

Ray Roberts, secretary of the Kansas Department of Corrections, raised several questions about the bill in written testimony submitted to the committee.

He asked about how far into the future a defendant could be held responsible for any increase in premiums. He also sought information about how the court would distinguish an increase in insurance costs related to a crime from other factors that might increase premiums.

The committee took no action on the bill.