Dealing with Offending Behavior: Restorative Justice Flashcards
historically, a person convicted of committing a criminal offence would have been regarded as
committing a crime against the state
in contrast restorative justice programs
switch the emphasis from the need of the state to the need of the victim
victims are encouraged to take an
active role in the processes
offenders are required to take
responsibility and face up to what they have done
a supervised meeting between the
two parties is arranged and managed by a trained mediator
Braithwaite date
2004
Braithwaite suggests
‘crime hurts, justice should heal’
restorative justice is a process of managed collaboration between
the offender and the victim based on the principles of the healing process
in restorative justice, the victim is given the opportunity to
explain how the incident affected them - this is an important part of the rehabilitative process
restorative justice programs share
four key features
key features of restorative justice: focus on acceptance of
responsibility and positive change, less emphasis on punishment
key features of restorative justice: non-courtroom setting
where offenders voluntarily choose to meet face-to-face with victims
key features of restorative justice: active rather then
passive involvement of all parties
key features of restorative justice: focus on positive
outcomes for both survivors and offenders
not all restorative justice programs involve
face-to-face contact between offender and victim
occasionally, the offender may make some
financial restitution to the victim to compensate for the physical or psychological damage done
The Restorative Justice Council (RJC) is an
independent body
what is the role of The Restorative Justice Council?
to establish clear standards for the use of restorative justice and to support victims and specialist professionals
The Restorative Justice Council (RJC) advocates for
restorative justice in schools, hospitals and prisons
there is flexibility in the way restorative justice programs
can be used and restorative justice covers a wide range of possible applications
restorative justice programs can be adapted to
the needs of the individual situation
the success of restorative justice programs may hinge on the extent to which the offender
feels remorse for their actions
the victim themselves may have an ulterior motive
to seek revenge or retribution of their own
if the victim has an ulterior motive then restorative justice programs
it may not lead to positive outcomes where the participants themselves do not have the best intentions
Shapland et al date
2007
shapland concluded after a seven year project that every
£1 spend on restorative justice programs would save £8 through reduced offending
restorative justice requires the input of a skilled and experienced individual to act as a
mediator to prevent serious conflicts
people with the experience to be mediators are
hard to come by and are expensive
restorative justice programs have a high
drop out rate as offenders/victims loose their nerve
feminist commentators take issue with the widespread use of restorative justice
the charity Women’s Aid has called for a legalized ban on its use in domestic violence cases
Women’s Aid are worried about the
power imbalance between the abuser and the abused
restorative justice programs may reduce
recidivism rates and is cheaper than running overcrowded prisons but it doesn’t receive much public support
