United States v. Cunningham

Randy Cunningham (defendant) was a retired military hero and former congressman with no prior record until his federal conviction for tax evasion. The conviction cost him his home, his marriage, and his reputation, and left him serving prison time, home confinement, and three years of supervised release, plus an order to pay restitution and back taxes. After completing his prison term and home confinement and serving one year of supervised release, Cunningham had paid back a third of what he owed (with a third of his income still being garnished) and was doing extensive volunteer work backed by community leaders. Cunningham moved for early termination of his supervised release, but the government (plaintiff) objected, citing its policy of opposing such motions until an offender has completed two-thirds of the release term and paid restitution in full.