Restorative Justice, Communities, and Delinquency: Whom Do We Reintegrate?

Source: (2005) Criminology & Public Policy. 4(1): 103-130.

Research Summary:
Communities represent an important facet of restorative justice; yet
few studies have empirically evaluated the influence that community
characteristics have on reintegrative programs. In this study, I use official
juvenile court data from an urban, metropolitan county in Arizona
and Census data to examine how individual- and community-level data
influence the selection of offenders to a restorative justice program. To
examine the effectiveness of the restorative justice program and to
determine if program impact varies by community, recidivism is
modeled with individual- and community-level data. Findings indicate
individual and community characteristics are important predictors of
restorative justice program placement. Also, juveniles who successfully
completed the restorative justice program were less likely to recidivate
than were juveniles in a comparison group. Recidivism results show no
variation of program impact across communities.
Policy Implications:
Study findings demonstrate the importance of incorporating community-
level data in studies of restorative justice. Restorative justice programs
must be sensitive to local, community characteristics and ensure
that reintegration efforts do not exclude offenders in need. The successful
reintegration process experienced by juveniles who participated in
the restorative justice programs is clearly reflective of program
effectiveness.