Supreme Court to explore ex post facto limits on restitution award

In Ellingburg v United States, to be argued on Oct. 14, the justices will consider whether the ex post facto clause of the Constitution applies to the Mandatory Victims Restitution Act, which entitles victims to restitution for certain offenses. If it does, Holsey Ellingburg is not obligated to pay any more restitution than the law required at the time he committed his crime (robbing a bank). If it does not, more onerous revisions to the federal restitution statute apply, increasing his obligations to his victims.