Frustrated that he has no power to make identity thieves pay for the time victims spend restoring their good credit records, a federal judge in Utah is calling for reform of restitution laws. In a memorandum issued Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Paul Cassell notes that federal statutes limit the kinds of losses that offenders can be ordered to repay. Lost time, a precious commodity, falls outside the covered categories, the judge wrote.

If a victim has suffered a financial loss the court will order restitution to be paid. The court also will order probation service fees on an ability to pay basis. For February 2007, victim restitution of $44,839 was collected from juvenile and adult offenders. Since July 2006, $205,387 has been collected. Probation service fees help cover costs for pre-sentence court investigations, offender supervision, work program user fees and juvenile hall expenses. For February, these totaled $41,587.