Source: (2009) Law and Contemporary Problems. 72(2):200-217.
In this article we propose changing the manner in which control rights over
criminal sanctions are distributed. This modest change has the potential to
increase victim well-being without interfering with social needs. Specifically,
victims should have the right to determine whether an offender will serve the
last ten to twenty percent of his prison term. The control right can do more than
help restore a sense of victim empowerment: it will likely encourage voluntary
victim–offender mediation (VOM), which has been demonstrated to assist the
emotional healing process for victims while perhaps decreasing recidivism rates.
Section II of this article briefly describes both recent victims’ rights reform
efforts and the recent rise in the use of VOM. Section III describes the proposal
involving the distribution of control rights and possible objections to it. (excerpt)
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