Justice System & Human Services

Restorative justice provides opportunities at various points in the justice system. Law enforcement may divert cases as a part of a formal or informal adjustment. Prosecutors may divert cases to a restorative justice practice in lieu of formal charges or negotiate with defense attorneys for guilty plea agreements. Judges can order an offender who has acknowledged responsibility for an offense to be assessed for the restorative justice practice. Probation officers may develop conditions of probation, along with citizens and victims. A detention or corrections center may have offenders participate in specially designed restorative justice practices, which can aid in an offender's successful re-entry into the community. In addition, restorative measures are often used to handle violations of probation or disciplinary actions within a facility. Finally, offenders may voluntarily agree to participate in a restorative practice separate from any court obligations.

(Taken from "ICJIA Implementing Balanced and Restorative Justice: A Guide for Law Enforcement Officers")

Crime can be traumatic to victims. Depending on the type of crime, victimization can range from an inconvenience to serious trauma. Each victim may respond to the crime differently. Victims may need empowerment, reassurance, support, resources, and an understanding of what has occurred. They need to be treated with compassion and sensitivity in an environment that is attentive to their individual feelings and needs. Sometimes these needs are not met by the traditional system. Studies have shown that restorative practices offer high victim satisfaction and can reduce fear and anxiety.

The Crime Victims Act gives victims the opportunity to be active participants in the justice practice and to be viewed as clients of the system. Crime victims deserve practices that treat them with dignity and respect; they need their voices to be heard. Restorative practices may also respond to victims' needs by providing them with opportunities for both direct and indirect dialogue with offenders and the community. Participation is always voluntary. Practices include:

Restorative Community Justice increases the effectiveness of police, prosecution, defense attorneys, and the courts by involving all parties interested in and affected by crime. Community policing expands the role of the law enforcement officer to one who not only arrests but serves as a community resource and peacemaker. Restorative community justice can be a guide for crime prevention and intervention. Officers can use restorative justice measures on the streets to:

A major principle of restorative community justice is that the community takes responsibility for its members. One way for that to occur is for community members to participate in restorative practices that handle conflict and crime. This can be done by law enforcement by:

Immediate sanctions are basically diversion mechanisms that hold offenders accountable for their actions by sanctioning behavior and providing needed services, but at the same time avoiding formal court appearances. These diversions are most appropriate for first-time offenders, minor repeat offenders, and in some cases, nonviolent felons. In many cases, keeping the community safe does not require formal court handling. Diversion from the system is a reasonable option for those who pose minimal risk to the community.

In a restorative community justice system, the program must:

Diversion programming that embraces restorative justice principles will encourage offenders to identify the harm they have caused and find a way to repair that harm within their community. They require different levels of intervention according to the needs of the offender and the level of the offense. Diversion participants may participate in drug/alcohol assessment, counseling or treatment, mental health assessment, education opportunities that promote responsible behavior, writing essays and apology letters, paying restitution, victim impact panels, restorative justice processes, and community service.

When prosecutors talk about approaches to prosecution, usually the discussion is of the ethical obligations to seek justice, the need to secure restitution for victims, the desire to be fair, the duty to protect the community, and the desire to rehabilitate the offender. Prosecutors have now added to the discussion restorative community justice principles of community safety, offender accountability, and competency development.

As the restorative approach has gained momentum, prosecutors have focused on "restorative" programs such as victim-offender mediation, conferencing, circles, and other innovative community-oriented programs. The attention paid to such programs has the risk of overshadowing the core principles that guide these programs. Many juvenile justice system professionals believed that if they had a diversion program in place, they were practicing restorative justice. This also led to the mistaken view that restorative justice was for low-level juvenile offenders.

Adopting a restorative justice philosophy in a prosecutor's office can have a number of advantages. It can:

The American Prosecutors Research Institute has worked directly with Florida Atlantic University and the Balanced and Restorative Justice (BARJ) Project to study, research and develop a policy for the infusion of restorative community justice principles in the role of prosecution of criminal behavior.

Probation is committed to a system that promotes public safety and identifies and repairs harm to victims and communities. Probation has the opportunity to take an active role in incorporating the victim's voice throughout the term of probation for the offender, working closely with the probation staff in developing strategies to assist the offender in making amends, restoring the harm caused by his or her behavior, and taking accountability for one's actions.

It is the goal of the courts to keep people in their communities while offering community supervision. In order for any individual to be reasonably managed in the community, probation must assess the individual's offense history and other factors that may point to continued criminal behavior. Maintaining an offender in the community may require a range of treatment, supervision, control options, and the support of informal systems such as families, schools, faith communities, and the community.

Probation can take a proactive role in implementing restorative principles in the pre-sentence investigation report, which is submitted to the court at the time of the offender's sentencing. During the recommendation phase of the report, the officer, within the context of the restorative philosophy and keeping community safety a priority, assesses the harm caused and what it will take to repair this harm. (The same ideals when developing a case plan while the offender is under supervision. Key elements of these phases are to reach out to both the victim and community, requesting their input and involvement in the system.)In addition, Probation can:

Probation is constantly seeking ways of implementing new strategies to provide meaningful, useful public service for offenders rather than the traditional method.

Many states are implementing specialized drug courts and are striving to make courts restorative in nature and operation.

While sanctions and incentives are part of the program, the program emphasizes treatment and acknowledges youths who attain milestones in sobriety and abstinence. Meaningful community service is often part of the drug court contract–a chance to give back to the community. The judge gives praise to an offender for behavior that reduces reliance on alcohol and other drugs. Graduation is designed as a very special acknowledgment, with the judge recognizing the work done by the offender in open court.

At the heart of juvenile drug court is the community. The drug establishes an appropriate system of rewards and sanctions. Effective rewards take thought, time, effort, and participation by the community. Businesses and other organizations can be contacted and informed of the nature of drug courts and the need to provide offenders with meaningful rewards. The community response can include sporting and musical events tickets, gift certificates, theater tickets, and other valuable and appreciated rewards for youths who use drug court as a serious opportunity to make lifestyle changes. Community volunteers are also welcomed and are used to assist in managing the program.

At its best, when all is said and done, juvenile drug courts help to build community and are a restorative experience for the participating youth.

Most correctional organizations have been strongly offender-focused. Recently, they have come to recognize the need to elevate victim participation, spotlight offender understanding and repairing of harm caused by their criminal acts, and emphasize the development of public, private, and community partnerships, which involve diverse citizens.

Certainly, there are barriers that must be overcome if the transformation from traditional to restorative community justice is to occur. This means the current offender focus must be abandoned in favor of a broader definition of a "case," which includes the victim, community, and offender. This requires changes in staff roles and responsibilities and in contracting provisions and provider services, as victims and community members become an integral part of the correctional process.

The changes are as follows:

Currently, many residential and correctional facilities do little to correct "criminal behavior." Research also indicates that any gains made by offenders in correctional facilities quickly evaporate following release because they are released back to disorganized communities where it is easy to slip back into old habits that resulted in the arrest in the first place. Large percentages of serious offenders continue to commit crimes and re-appear in the system.

Child Welfare (Family and Children Services, Department of Human Services) has often been stereotyped as being an intrusive and family-damaging process. However, human services organizations in many areas are working toward providing restorative services and interventions. Restorative community justice values and principles emphasize the effect "wrongdoing" has not only on the victim but on the community as a whole. Resources to families can be increased and strengthened by community members. Community and family involvement in problem-solving increases the community's capacity and willingness to respond to problems that may have been primarily handled by formal systems.