The sex offender as scapegoat: vigilante violence and a faith community response
September 2, 2009
Scapegoating violence is “that enigmatic quality that pervades the judicial system when that system replaces sacrifice. This obscurity coincides with the transcendental effectiveness of a violence that is holy, legal, and legitimate successfully opposed to a violence that is unjust,...
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Criminal justice organisations want new Titan prisons abandoned.
September 2, 2009
The signatories to the letter – who include the Prison Reform Trust, the Prison Officers’ Association, Liberty, Nacro, the International Centre for Prison Studies and Napo – argue that Titan prisons would squander billions of pounds of taxpayers’ money and are not a...
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Problems with legal aid
September 2, 2009
For civil legal aid, roll out the mediation model which is to be introduced for family law, and use legal aid to fund mediation in more civil cases. The rest? Just accept that where the rule of law applies some people will need adequate lawyers but cannot pay for them The cost of large numbers...
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Helping moms ‘take control of their lives’ Just-Us Girls program aims to mentor troubled young mothers struggling in the justice system
September 2, 2009
The report will tell the young mother’s own story, explain her dreams and aspirations, provide information about her support system, her relationship with the father of her children, her criminal history and mental-health issues. Most importantly, though, it will outline the young...
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California officials fear Jaycee Lee Dugard case may hurt efforts on parole
September 1, 2009
But as the New York Times points out the problem with the prison system in California, and many places across the U.S., is that we are spending too many dollars incarcerating nonviolent offenders while reducing the monies needed to handle truly violent and dangerous offenders. The...
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UniCredit Group and restorative justice
September 1, 2009
According to its website, UniCredit Group began a process called “Values Laboratory” in 2003 that engaged over 1500 people in an attempt to articulate the principles that would enable the company to create a corporate culture that contributed to both profitability and...
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Christian colleges/universities in US with peace studies programs
September 1, 2009
The earliest such programs in the U.S. were in institutions related to the “historic peace churches†(Mennonites, Church of the Brethren, and Friends/Quakers), but it has spread beyond them. Read the whole...
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RJ Week 2009 Resources Available
August 31, 2009
These include: Bilingual Poster highlighting the 2009 theme Bookmark with a description of restorative justice programmes and processes. Workshop outlines for training sessions for faith-communities Communities responding to human needs 2009 Workshop on Restorative Justice for Faith...
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Video Review: Concrete Steel & Paint
August 29, 2009
Then we meet Victoria Green and her daughter Altovise Love-Craigshead. They lost Emir, their son and brother, when he was shot several times. As she talks about who Emir was and about recognizing him by his sneakers when she rushed to the hospital after hearing he was in critical condition,...
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Restorative Justice and Work-Related Death
August 26, 2009
Three working hypotheses emerged from this discussion, which were then tested in a consultation process. This involved interviews with bereaved families, employers, unions, criminal defence lawyers, OHS investigators and prosecutors, and the coronial service. The findings are presented in the...
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Video Review: On the Road Together: Teen Driving
August 25, 2009
As part of his probation, he was referred to the St. Croix Valley Restorative Justice Program. Now, he speaks in circles at nearby high schools, presenting his story to teach kids one very important lesson: always pay attention to the road. The Remer family tells their own tragic story about...
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Justice and mercy
August 23, 2009
In another of today’s RJOB entries, Lisa Rea focuses on the difficulty for victims when the convicted individual persists in denying guilt and there appear to be reasons to give credence to that denial. Part of what victims need is answers, preferably from a repentant and honest...
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Healing the victims of Lockerbie
August 23, 2009
As is often the case the views of the victims vary. Some victims like Kara Weipz of New Jersey, whose 20 year old brother Richard Monetti died on Flight 103, are shocked by the decision. Weipz called it an insult and “utterly disgusting”. Weipz said, “I don’t show...
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