State v. Morrison, 2019 UT App 51

Morrison assaulted his roommate (Roommate) on Sept. 29, 2016; the assault damaged a TV and furniture. Morrison pled guilty to assault; criminal mischief was dismissed but restitution was pursued.
The State sought $6,818.42 in restitution; after an evidentiary hearing the district court awarded $1,397.43 (including $150 for the TV and $144.90 for the nightstand, not contested on appeal).
Roommate testified he and his girlfriend had already planned to move within a couple months, but the assault caused them to move a month earlier; he claimed moving costs (application fee, security deposit, professional movers, one month higher rent).
Roommate also claimed ten days of lost wages: four days to recover from injuries and six days for moving/relocation tasks. He worked through a staffing agency and said missing four days led the Company to not hire him permanently.
The defense presented a private investigator who said the Company ended Roommate’s assignment the day after the assault due to reduced workload, contradicting Roommate’s account.
The district court awarded $638.53 for moving-related items (including application fee, security deposit, movers, and one month higher rent) and $464 for four days’ lost wages; on appeal Morrison challenged the awards for moving expenses and lost wages as not proximately caused by the assault.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether moving expenses were proximately caused by the assault	State: assault forced an earlier move, making related moving costs reasonable restitution	Morrison: Roommate planned to move anyway; fees and movers not tied to expedited move and thus not proximately caused	Partial reversal: only one month increased rent ($70.28) was proximately caused; application fee, security deposit, and movers’ fee were not supported by evidence and were reversed
Whether lost wages (four days) were proximately caused by the assault	State: Roommate missed four days recovering from the assault and lost work as a result; staffing agency placement made replacement likely	Morrison: investigator showed assignment ended for lack of work, so termination wasn’t caused by assault; State failed to prove proximate cause	Affirmed: district court’s credibility determinations supported awarding four days’ lost wages ($464)

State v. Ogden, 416 P.3d 1132 (Utah 2018) (restitution requires proximate causation)
State v. England, 405 P.3d 848 (Utah Ct. App. 2017) (restitution limited to losses caused by defendant)
Raab v. Utah Ry., 221 P.3d 219 (Utah 2009) (proximate cause requires more than but-for causation)
State v. Becker, 427 P.3d 306 (Utah Ct. App. 2018) (foreseeability in proximate-cause analysis)
State v. Cristobal, 238 P.3d 1096 (Utah Ct. App. 2010) (cannot award restitution based on speculation)
State v. Brown, 221 P.3d 273 (Utah Ct. App. 2009) (reversing moving-expense restitution without causal connection)
Kidd v. Kidd, 321 P.3d 200 (Utah Ct. App. 2014) (appellate deference to trial court credibility findings)