Restorative Justice Reader: Texts, Sources, Context

Source: (2003) Devon, UK and Portland OR: Willan Publishing.

This book is a compilation of carefully selected extracts from the most important and influential contributions to the restorative justice literature and its philosophy; an informative commentary also provides context and explanation as appropriate. The extracts presented include writings by both well-known proponents of restorative justice and key critics of the restorative justice movement. The introduction provides an overview of restorative approaches to criminal justice. It notes that according to proponents of restorative justice, the dispensing of justice and the control of crime should not involve punitive interventions that are of questionable effectiveness and morality. Rather, interventions should have restorative effects on the victim, the offender, and the community. This is most likely to occur, according to advocates of restorative justice, when offenders and victims are treated according to their needs, and offenders are held accountable by structuring and facilitating the development of positive attitudes and behaviors. Abstract courtesy of National Criminal Justice Reference Service, www.ncjrs.org.