Dealing with offender profiling: Restorative justice programmes Flashcards
What is restorative justice?
A method of reducing and atoning for offending behaviour through reconciliation between offender and victim, as well as the wider community.
How does restorative justice help victims?
Restorative justice switches the emphasis front he need to enforce law and punish to the needs of the individual victim
What can RJ involve?
Communication with the victim, payment from offender to victim, writing a letter to a victim or a face-to-face meeting or video.
What are the 3 key aims of RJ?
Rehabilitation of offenders
Atonement for wrongdoing
Vicitm’s perspective
How does RJ rehabilitate offenders?
The victim has the opportunity to explain the real impact of the crime and this helps the offender to understand the effects on their victim.
The offender is encouraged to take responsibility for the crime which should affect future behaviour.
How does RJ have victims atone for wrongdoing?
Offenders may offer concrete compensation for the crime.
The victim has the opportunity to express their distress, which provides the offender with the chance to develop empathy by taking the perspective of the victim.
What is the victim’s perspective of RJ?
From the victim’s perspective, RJ can reduce their sense of victimisation as they are no longer powerless and have a voice.
A victim may develop a greater understanding of the offender by listening to their account which, in turn, reduces the victim’s sense of being harmed.
How is RJ an Opposition to Custodial Sentencing?
Since this way of dealing with offending behaviour prioritises the needs of the victim over the needs of the state (to enforce the law and punish), restorative justice opposes the idea of custodial sentencing.
What is the theory of restorative justice?
Ted Wachtel and Paul McCold (2003) - theoretical framework
- focus on relationships over punishment
- crime harms people and their relationships, justice requires healing of this harm
- recent models of restorative justice recognise the wider community as well as offender and victim
- involvement of 3 ‘stakeholders’: victim seeks reparation, the offender must take responsibility and community aims to achieve reconciliation to maintain a healthy society
What is a peace circle?
- set up in communities with high crime/violence levels
- aim to foster a respectful environment where the community offers support to crime victims but also welcomes offenders into the circle to enable mutual understanding
- everyone sits in chairs placed in a circle
- ‘talking piece’ passed from one person to another so everyone can speak uninterrupted
- ‘keeper’ who is tasked to maintain a respectful atmosphere and constructive solutions.
Outline the evaluation for restorative justice programmes
Advantages over custodial sentencing
Ethical issues
Requires remorse
Only certain victims/offenders
