In the Interest of R. H.

The juvenile court erred in setting the restitution amount by approximation, rather than by a proper opinion of the value of the items.

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In this juvenile delinquency case, R. H. appeals from a restitution order entered by the Juvenile Court of DeKalb County, contending that the State failed to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that the goods he admitted stealing from the victim were worth $250, the amount that the court ordered him to pay. For the reasons explained below, we vacate the restitution order and remand.

OCGA § 17-14-3 allows for court-ordered restitution, as part of a sentence, to the victim of a crime. “The amount of restitution ordered shall not exceed the victim’s damages.” OCGA § 17-14-9. For purposes of restitution, OCGA § 17-14-2 2 defines damages as “all . . . damages which a victim could recover against an offender in a civil action . . . based on the same act or acts for which the offender is sentenced.” When restitution is ordered for property that the defendant stole or destroyed, the correct determination for the amount of restitution is the fair market value of the property at the time of loss, rather than the original purchase price or replacement cost. Hawthornev. State, 285 Ga. App. 196, 197 1 648 SE2d 387 2007. Where the defendant disputes the amount or type of restitution, the trial court resolves the issue, and “the burden of demonstrating the amount of the loss sustained by a victim as a result of the offense shall be on the State.” OCGA § 17-14-7 b. “Determinations regarding the credibility of the witnesses and the weight to be accorded conflicting evidence are for the trial court, and this Court will not interfere with such determinations as long as there is any evidence to support them.” Citation omitted. Coile v. State, 311 Ga. App. 537, 537‑538 716 SE2d 527 2011.

In the Interest of R. H.

The juvenile court erred in setting the restitution amount by approximation, rather than by a proper opinion of the value of the items.

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