Restorative justice programme

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Changing the emphasis

  • A person convicted of a crime would have been regarded as having committed a crime against the state.
  • Restorative justice programmes switch the emphasis from the needs of the state which is to enforce the law and punish, to the needs of the individual victim which is to come to terms with the crime and move on.
  • Victims are encouraged to take an active role in the process
  • Offenders are required to take responsibility and face up to what they have done
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The restorative justice process

  • John Braithwaite said 'crime hurts, justice should heal'.
  • Restorative justice is a process of the managed collaboration between the offender and the victime based on the related principles of healing and empowerment.
  • A supervised meeting between the two parties is organised and a trained mediator attends the meeting supervises the meeting.
  • The victim is given the opportunity to confront the offender and explain how the incident affected them.
  • The offender is able to see the consequences of their actions, including the emotional distress it caused.
  • This is seen as a important part of the rehabilitation process.
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Key features of the process

  • Focus on acceptance of responsibility and positive change for people who harm others; less emphasis on punishment.
  • Not restricted to courtrooms; survivors (victims) and those responsible for harm may voluntarily choose to meet face-to-face in a non-courtroom setting.
  • Active rather than passive involvement of all parties in the process.
  • Focus on positive outcomes for survivors and those who have engaged in wrongdoing.
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Variations of the process

  • Not all restorative programmes involve face-to-face encounters between offender and victim.
  • The offender may make some financial restitution (return) to the victim which may reflect the psychological damage done or the actual, physical damage done, in the case of a break-in.
  • Other variations may involve the offender repairing damaged property themselves.
  • RJ is flexible and can function as an alternative to prison as an add on to community service or as an incentive which may lead to the reduction of an existing sentence.
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The restorative justice council

  • RJC is an independent body whose role is to establish clear standars for the use of RJ and to support victims and specialist professionals in the field.
  • RJC advocates the use of RJ in preventing and managing conflict in many areas including schools, children's services, workplaces, hospitals and communities, as well as prison.
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Evaluation of restorative justice

  • One of the strengths of RJ is that - unlike custodial sentencing, which tends to adopt a 'one size fits all' approach - there is flexibility in the way in which programmes can be administered, and the term itself covers a wide range of possible applications (schools and hospitals).
    • This is positive because this programme can be adapted and tailored to the needs of the individuals situation; however this does present difficulties in terms of drawing general conclusions about the effectiveness of the approach.
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Evaluation of restorative justice

  • success of RJ programme may hinge upon the extent to which the offender feels remorse for their actions.
    • There is a danger that some offenders may 'sign up'  for the programme to avoid prison, or for the promise of a reduced sentence, rather than a genuine willingness to want to make a amends to the victim.
    • The victim may also have an ulterior motive - to seek revenge or retribution of their own.
    • This means that RJ programmes may not lead to positive outcomes when participants do not agree to take part with the best of intentions.
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Evaluation of restorative justice

  • RJ programmes are expensive to run - A 7 year government funded research project conducted by Joanna Shapland et al concluded that every £1 spent on RJ would save the criminal justice system £8 through reduced reoffending rates.
    • The meeting between the offender and the victim may be an emotionally changed affair requiring the input of a skilled and experienced individual to act as mediator.
    • Specialist professionals who are trained in these matters are likely to be expensive.
    • RJ programmes often suffer from high dropout rates as offender or the victim may 'lose their nerve' prior to the meeting and withdraw from the scheme.
    • This means that, in practise, it may not always be the best and most cost-effective solution.
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Evaluation of restorative justice

  • There is a growing number of feminist commentators who take issue with its widespread use
  • An organisation called Women's Aid have called for a legislative ban on the use of RJ in domestic violence cases.
  • Their concerns relate to the power imbalance in the relationship between the abuser and the abused
  • The fact that wider community who should be offering support, often resorts to blaming the victim.
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Evaluation of restorative justice

  • RJ may reduce rates of recidivism and might prove to be much cheaper than running and staffing overcrowded prisons.
  • Alternatives to custodial sentencing tend not to recieve much public support.
  • They are often regarded as soft options, and these opinions tend to be echoed by politicians, as they are keen to prove to the public that they are 'tough on crime'.
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