Source: (2004) In, Howard Zehr and Barb Toews, eds., Critical Issues in Restorative Justice. Monsey, New York and Cullompton, Devon, UK: Criminal Justice Press and Willan Publishing. Pp. 95-105.
In this chapter Heather Strang examines what the restorative justice agenda is and what it should be in relation to victims of crime. She contends that restorative justice, to be effective, must do certain things with respect to victims of crime. Restorative justice theory and practice must recognize the legitimate emotions of victims. It must provide a means for the expression of those emotions. It must create a forum in which the harm caused by crime can be repaired to the satisfaction of those who have directly experienced the harm. Her perspective throughout is that restorative justice, to be truly restorative, must view and respond to crime with victims as utterly central and integral to the process.
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