US v. Hankins, No. 15-30345 (6-6-17)(McKeown w/Fletcher & Dorsey). Can a defendant discharge court ordered restitution through a private settlement with the victim? The 9th answers "no." The restitution is part of the sentence, and restitution is required under MVRA.  The MVRA does allow the court, if a victim declines restitution, to direct it to the general Crime Victims Fund.

Here, the restitution for bank fraud ran to $350,000. The bank assigned the debt to a collection entity, which eventually entered into an agreement.  The Government kept garnishing wages.  The defendant sought to file a discharge of debt, but it was denied for the above reasons.

The decision is here:

http://cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/opinions/2017/06/06/15-30345.pdf