Whether petitioner's offense of making a false statement about his mental health history resulted in 'damage to or loss or destruction of property' of the Army

QUESTION PRESENTED “Federal courts cannot order restitution in a criminal case without a statutory basis.” United States v. Lachowski, 405 F.3d 696, 698 (8th Cir. 2005). The Victim and Witness Protection Act, 18 U.S.C. §3663, authorizes a court to order a defendant convicted of an offense described in Title 18 of the Criminal Code to pay restitution resulting from “damage to or loss or destruction of property of a victim of the offense.” When petitioner joined the Army in 2017 his application stated he had no mental health history. Shortly after he reported for basic training he got into an altercation with another recruit, and was discharged. Two years later in an unrelated case his medical records fell into the hands of federal authorities. They showed he had been in regular contact with a psychiatrist since 2011. Petitioner pled guilty to making a false statement in a matter within the jurisdiction of an executive agency of the government. 18 U.S.C. § 1001(a)(2). The district court ordered restitution to the Army in the amount of $17,832, which the Army claimed was the cost to recruit and train a typical recruit for 36 days, the length of time petitioner was in the Army. The question presented is whether petitioner’s offense of making a false statement about his mental health history resulted in “damage to or loss or destruction of property” of the Army. i