What will happen to me?
June 20, 2011
Millions of adults are involved in the care of these children. Some, like grandparents, may be the primary caregivers. Others such as teachers, social workers, mentors and school counselors are regularly involved. The issues raised by these children’s situations can be...
Read More
Right and proper: Conservatives and criminal justice
June 20, 2011
Mr Williams and his Republican colleagues join the swelling ranks of conservatives who have taken up the cause of sentencing and prison reform. In February Nathan Deal, Georgia’s Republican governor, announced a bill to create a council to recommend changes in how his state sentences...
Read More
An introduction to the Nova Scotia Restorative Justice Program (NSRJP)
June 20, 2011
The Department of Justice has service agreements with a network of eight non-profit community justice agencies and one tribal organization which offer services specifically for Aboriginal youth. These community justice agencies deliver the Restorative Justice Program and Community Service...
Read More
Finding forgiveness
June 15, 2011
But she knows her own mind as far as her attacker, Craig Sussek, is concerned… she’s forgiven him and regularly visits him in prison in Wisconsin in the United States, where they talk about their lives and his remorse at what happened that night in 1995. Some say she’s...
Read More
Exercising Discretion: The Gateway to Justice
June 15, 2011
The substantial growth in the use of out-of-court disposals has created some disquiet among criminal justice professionals over inconsistencies in their use, in particular for persistent and more serious offending. We found wide variations in practice across police force areas in the...
Read More
New Zealand study: Reoffending Analysis for Restorative Justice Cases: 2008 and 2009
June 15, 2011
….Rigorous data verification, statistical modelling and matching processes were used. Conferenced offenders were compared with: offenders referred for restorative justice but who did not receive a restorative justice conference as the victim declined or the case was otherwise considered...
Read More
Restorative justice and large organizations as victims
June 13, 2011
a) how do we put a “face†on the victim? Oftentimes large corporations do not want to be involved in any meeting. Restorative Justice processes work best when we meet each other. It is much harder for a person to take responsibility for their actions when they can’t see who...
Read More
Ken Clarke was right to start a debate about sentencing in rape cases
June 8, 2011
While some victims gain peace of mind from their attacker being behind bars for a lengthy period, decades of punitive sentencing regimes and higher and higher prison populations have not secured justice or safety for most victims of sexual violence. There is little evidence that deterrence...
Read More
Colombia moves past reconciliation and revives the idea of reparation
June 8, 2011
….The law contains two main parts, the first refers to the judicial process and the conditions under which the members of illegal armed groups (either paramilitary of guerrilla) can benefit from an alternative punishment. That is among others to fully confess their crimes, depose their...
Read More
Parole and restorative justice
June 8, 2011
….The major provisions in the new law are: The division of responsibilities between the probation services (that will be responsible for parole and victim support) and the correctional services (that will address the care and re-integration aspect of the offender). The setting up of new...
Read More
Judge Irene Sullivan on learning a lesson in restorative justice from teenagers
June 5, 2011
….After coffee and donuts in a large meeting room, we arranged our chairs in a circle around a centerpiece of colorful talismans or tokens and a peace candle. Susan lit the candle while holding a colorful woven bookmark. She explained the rules: Only the person holding the bookmark...
Read More
Characteristics of restorative / transformational justice approaches
June 5, 2011
Some initiatives look beyond individuals to examine and seek to address the social conditions in which violence regularly occurs, while many others do not. Even so, some values/commitments are largely shared – but to varying degrees and in different ways. Greater focus on...
Read More
Restorative justice prison ministry manual available
June 5, 2011
Restorative justice is a significantly different way of looking at and responding to the problem of crime – a way that can lead to healing and transformation for victims and offenders alike, says the manual. “At its heart, restorative justice is about relationships,” Lamsma...
Read More
Colombia to compensate victims of armed conflict.
May 31, 2011
Days after passage of the victims’ law, the government announced it had identified the remains of nearly 10,000 people buried in unmarked graves over the past 40 years by matching morgue reports with fingerprint records. Another 12,000 people, whose records were incomplete, remain...
Read More