The State, the Community and Restorative Justice

Source: (1996) Justice as Healing 1 (1).

Scriml describes the state as made up of the government, media, academe, religious organizations, and professions. All of these parties, some more directly than others, help to support a retributive or penal form of criminal justice. He notes that the state (in this case, Canada) is becoming more aware of restorative justice, but he contends that it does not really practice reform even when it adopts the language of reform. He therefore argues that the best potential for a restorative approach to criminal justice is outside of the state (especially outside of the government) and in community structures, processes, and values.