Criminal Justice

Victim Offender Mediation (VOM) involves a meeting between the victim and offender facilitated by a trained mediator. With the assistance of the mediator, the victim and offender begin to resolve the conflict and construct their own approach to achieving justice in the face of their particular crime. Both are given the opportunity to express their feelings and perceptions of the offense (which often dispels misconceptions they may have had of one another before entering the facilitated dialogue). The meetings conclude with an attempt to reach an agreement on steps the offender will take to repair the harm suffered by the victim and in other ways to “make things right.

The offender’s participation is usually characterized as voluntary as well, although it should be recognized that offenders may “volunteer” in order to avoid more onerous outcomes that would otherwise be imposed. Unlike binding arbitration, no specific outcome is imposed by the mediator. Instead, the mediator’s role is to facilitate interaction between the victim and offender in which each assumes a proactive role in achieving an outcome that is perceived as fair by both.

Family/community group conferencing enlarges the number of participants to include family members, supporters, and other community members. There may be individuals from the staff or system present as well. It involves the people most affected by the crime–the victim and the offender, as well as the family, friends, and key supporters of both–in deciding the resolution of a criminal incident. These affected parties are brought together by a trained facilitator to discuss how they and others have been harmed by the offense and how that harm might be repaired. To participate, the offender must admit to the offense. Participation by all involved is voluntary. The facilitator contacts the victim and offender to explain the process and invites them to the conference; the facilitator also asks them to identify key members of their support systems who will be invited to participate as well.

The conference typically begins with the offender describing the incident, followed by each participant describing its impact on his or her life. It is preferable to allow the victim to start the discussion if they wish. Through these narrations, the offender is faced with the human impact of the behavior on the victim, on those close to the victim, and the offender’s own family and friends. The victim has the opportunity to express feelings and ask questions about the incident. After a thorough discussion of the impact of the behavior on those present, the victim is asked to identify desired outcomes from the conference and thus help to shape the obligations that will be placed on the offender. All participants may contribute to the problem-solving process of determining how the offender might best repair the harm he or she has caused. The session ends with participants signing an agreement outlining their expectations and commitments.

Circles were developed from the First Nation communities in Canada. Circles are used for many purposes. In addition to sentencing circles, which are intended to determine sentences in criminal cases, there are talking circles (used for group discussion of a particular event), peacekeeping circles (circles based on mediating disputes), and healing circles (processes that deal with group therapy). Circles often enlarge the number of participants, including victims, offenders, staff, family members, justice officials, and the community. Circles are used in a large variety of communities.

It should be noted that while victims have some needs that involve the offender, they also have needs that do not. The same can be true for the offender. Circles can serve both encounter and non-encounter programs.

In serious and violent crime cases in which the offender is engaged in the criminal justice system in a pre- or post-plea, pre-sentence or post-sentence capacity, a formal Harm Awareness, Accountability, Repair, and Reintegration Assessment can be conducted in the absence of victim participation. This process begins with determining the offender's capacity and willingness to provide an accurate narrative of what happened in their case and authentically explore the harms caused to the direct victim(s) and/ or victim-survivors, the community, the offender's family, and the offender themselves. Face-to-face Interviews are conducted by a trained Restorative Justice facilitator and include the offender's writings and apology letters, if appropriate. Standard risk and protective factors affecting the offender's capacity for successful reintegration are also identified. The facilitator then creates a comprehensive report, which is submitted to the District Attorney and Judge. These assessments are often conducted at the request of the offender's criminal defense team and submitted as mitigating evidence. This assessment model was developed by Restorative Solutions, Inc. and is available by request.

Restorative programs such as dialogue and conferencing are used for the most severe kinds of crime, including violent assault, rape, and murder. Often the offender is in prison. The encounter is not to determine the outcome of the sentence. They are often helpful in providing information and healing for all participants. With careful assessment and significant pre-conferencing preparation with both parties individually so as to avoid the possibility of revictimization, such encounters have been found to be powerful, positive experiences for victims and offenders. These processes are conducted by individuals who have received extensive training and must be victim-initiated. In some states, Restorative Justice dialogues in cases of severe crime are legislatively prohibited.

A new restorative program area has to do with the transition of offenders following prison. In both halfway houses and in prisons, programs are designed to help victims and offenders as the offender returns to the community. Circles of Accountability and Support gather a circle of people – ex-offenders, community members, and even victims of similar offenses to support the offender but also to hold them accountable. Initially, the interaction is a daily check-in with guidelines for what they can and cannot do. Working with the ex-offender to take responsibility for their behaviors while at the same time offering support has proven successful in reintegrating ex-offenders while allaying community fears.

Criminal restitution is a process by which offenders are held accountable for the financial losses they have caused to the victims of their crimes. The restitution payment is the sum of money paid by the offender to the victim to balance this monetary debt.

Without restitution, a victim may be financially devastated by the crime committed against them. A victim’s financial losses can also contribute to their experience of trauma and frustration with the criminal and juvenile justice systems. On the other hand, receiving a restitution payment can make a victim feel that the justice system is working on their behalf to ensure they are justly compensated for their losses. Moreover, restitution, as a part of the sentence or a condition of community supervision, is an essential aspect of holding offenders accountable for their crimes. Restitution is considered to be a “core” victim right which is crucial to help victims reconstruct their lives in the aftermath of a crime.

Community service is work performed by an offender for the benefit of the community as a formal or informal sanction. Just as neighborhoods and communities are harmed by criminal and delinquent activities, they can be partially restored by meaningful service that contributes to their improvement. For community service to be restorative, all affected parties need to have the opportunity to participate in determining what community service is done and whether the work agreed to is connected to the offense to the extent possible. Additionally, it needs to be specified how the agreed community service will be monitored by the community. Community service offers one way an offender can be held accountable to repair some of the harm caused by his or her criminal actions.

A community restorative board is typically composed of a small group of citizens who have face-to-face meetings with offenders. During a meeting, members discuss with the offender the nature of the offense and its consequences. Then board members develop a set of proposed sanctions which they discuss with the offender until they reach an agreement on the specific actions the offender will take within a given time period to make reparation for the crime. Subsequently, the offender must document his or her progress in fulfilling the terms of the agreement.

Victim impact panels provide a forum for crime victims to tell a group of offenders about the impact of the crime on their lives and the lives of their families, friends, and neighbors. Panels typically involve three or four victim speakers, each of whom spends about 15 minutes telling their story in a non-judgmental, non-blaming manner. The offenders of the victim presenters are not present. While some time is usually dedicated to questions and answers, the purpose of the panel is for the victims to speak rather than for the victims and offenders to engage in a dialogue.

As a result of positive feedback from victims and offenders who have participated in drunk driving panels, this strategy has been used with other crimes such as property crimes, physical assault, domestic violence, child abuse, elder abuse, and homicide (the survivors serve as panelists). Attendance by offenders at a panel is often court-ordered in juvenile and criminal cases, either at diversion or accompanying a probation sentence. Panels have also been used in prison and jail settings, with parolees, and in treatment programs, defensive driving schools, and youth education programs. Additionally, victim impact panels are often presented at training forums for juvenile and criminal justice professionals to help them better understand the scope and trauma of victimization.

The victim impact class is an educational program designed to teach offenders about the human consequences of crime. Offenders are taught how crime affects the victim and the victim’s family, friends, and community and how it affects them and their own families, friends, and communities. Specific modules address property crimes, sexual assault, domestic violence, child abuse and neglect, elder abuse and neglect, drunk driving, drug-related crimes, gang violence, and homicide. Victim impact classes have been adapted for both adult and juvenile offenders in diversion, probation, prison, pre-release, detention, and parole-supervised settings.

A key element of the classes is the direct involvement of victims and victim service providers. They tell their stories of being victimized or helping victims reconstruct their lives after a traumatic crime. Parents of incarcerated youth and community representatives, such as insurance adjusters, may also speak to the class. Offenders are encouraged to enter into a dialogue with the guest speakers.

The key question to analyze the effectiveness of particular situations is: