Dealing with offending behaviour: Restorative justice Flashcards
What is restorative justice?
A system of dealing with offending behaviour which focuses on the rehabilitation of offenders through reconciliation with victims.
This enables the offender to see their impact of their crime and serves to empower survivors by giving them a voice.
What are the key features of the programme?
Trained mediator supervises the meeting.
Non-courtroom setting where offenders voluntarily meet with survivor.
Can be face-to-face meting or conducted remotely via video link.
The survivor is given the opportunity to confront the offender and explain how the incident affected them.
The focus is on positive outcomes for both survivors and offenders.
Other community members such as, neighbours, family, friends may all which to explain the effects of the crime.
When does restorative justice occur?
It may occur before a pre-trial, it could also function alongside a prison sentence, or as an alternative to prison as an incentive to reduce the sentence that they receive.
What is restitution?
A monetary payment by an offender to the survivor for the harm resulting from the offence.
Other variations of the scheme may involve the offender fixing property that they damaged.
What is the restorative justice council?
An independent body whose role is to establish clear standards for the use of restorative justice and to support survivors and specialist professionals in the field.
The restortive justice council advocates the use of restorative practice beyond dealing with crime. It can be used in preventing and managing conflict in many areas including schools, workplaces, hospitals and communities.
Strength of restorative justice.
Evidence suggests it has positive outcomes.
The Restorative Justice Council reported the results of a major seven-year research project.
They found that 85% of survivors reported satisfaction with the process of meeting their offender face-to-face and 78% would recommend it to other people experiencing a similar situation.
60% of survivors felt that the process had made them feel better about the incident. Only 2% said that it made them feel worse.
2nd Strength- Recidivism
It decreases the rates of reoffending (recidivism).
Strang conducted a meta-analysis of 10 studies comparing offenders who experienced face-to-face restorative justice with those who just experienced custodial sentencing.
They found that the restorative justice group were significantly less likely to reoffend.
Bain- found lowered recidivism rates with adult offenders, especially when using one-to-one contact rather than general community involvement.
Limitation of restorative justice.
Offenders may abuse the system.
The success of restorative justice may hinge on an offender’s intentions being honourable.
Gijseghem- Suggests that offenders may use restorative justice to avoid punishment or playing down their fault.
This would explain why not all offenders ultimately benefit from the restorative justice system and do on to re-offend.
