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Restoring the Community

A quick look at crime

By Raven DiamondPublished 4 years ago 4 min read
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There is a growing problem in our communities, and it has a name, Crime. There have been many attempts to handle this beast, but all falling short of expectations and some even creating new problems such as the felony stigma. However, there is a new challenger in the ring and its name is Restorative Justice. Restorative Justice is “a theory of justice that emphasizes repairing the harm caused or revealed by criminal behavior. It is best accomplished through cooperative processes that include all stakeholders” ("What is Restorative Justice?" par 1). Basically, the community gets together to decide what punishment should be dealt to the offender and it allows all those involved (including the Offender) to heal. Restorative Justice is more effective in dealing with crime and has a high success rate in places that have already implemented it. With the installation of Restorative Justice we could see stronger communities with less crime.

How does Restorative Justice work? Essentially it focuses on reintegrating the offender into society as a productive citizen. It does this by allowing the community and victim to participate in the offenders’ punishment usually consisting of holding a job/ going to school, having a curfew, and abstaining from drugs/alcohol. It allows the offender to see how many people their actions affected and allows him/ her to try to reconcile for what they did. The judge will sometimes set up counseling for both the victim and the offender. One such occasion was a 17 year old burglarizing a home. The victim Lori was afraid to go to the meetings because she envisioned the 17 year old as a hardened criminal, but as the meetings progressed she realized he was just a kid who made a dumb mistake. She forgave him and he realized his mistake and apologized (“Restorative Justice Sentencing Circle”). This leads to a higher victim satisfaction rate (95% according to Colorado Restorative Justice Council (par 1)). This type of Justice also has a lower recidivism (reoffender) rate. According to "Restorative Justice and Recidivism" in adults (8% reduction)… [and in] youth (2% reduction). Now, what we have to do to implement Restorative Justice is to get involved with politics Judges running for reelection will often listen to the peoples wants and reflect that with their campaign and what they do once elected. We don’t have to do much else due to the fact restorative uses some of the same resources we already have in use such as rehabilitation and probation.

Restorative Justice can do a lot, but it’s not a cure all antidote. Like everything it has its short comings. Restorative justice is not for everyone. Some communities and victims do not feel comfortable dealing with the offender and want the justice system to “do its job”. Some offences are not suitable for restorative justice such a murder and must be dealt with traditionally. Also, Restorative Justice is typically the judges’ call, so even those eligible may not receive it. However, that poses yet another problem. Who is even eligible for Restorative Justice? Should someone higher up than the judge set the rules for it like the Supreme Court or should we keep that decision for the judge/ community? Restorative Justice is a nice thought, but it still has a lot of kinks to work out.

To fix those kinks we can use the traditional form of justice and mix in restorative when we can. The two forms of justice will cover all of the bases. Restorative Justice needs to be slowly introduced and used with minor cases to work out the kinks. Once those are fixed we can use them more readily and have a set of guide lines. With the installation of Restorative Justice we could see stronger communities with less crime. It worked with Lori and the 17 year old burglar. Why not broaden our justice systems horizon and embrace a new form of sentencing that is more effective by having higher completion rates (96% offenders who went to process completed their agreements according to the Justice Partnership Database (Database 12))? Change is meant to be embraced without it we would not have half the things we take for granted today. Let’s embrace Restorative Justice.

Works Cited

Colorado Restorative Justice Council. "Does Restorative Justice Actually Work?" Does Restorative Justice Actually Work? N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Dec. 2013.

Justice Partnership Database. "Analysis of Longmont Community Justice Partnership Database 2007-2009." National Research Center, May 2010. Web. 08 Dec. 2013. <http://www.lcjp.org/images/stories/pdf/LCJP_2007-2009_Report_Final.pdf>.

"Restorative Justice and Recidivism." Government of Canada, Public Safety Canada. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Dec. 2013.

"Restorative Justice Sentencing Circle." WDIO.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Dec. 2013.

"What Is Restorative Justice?" —. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Dec. 2013.

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About the Creator

Raven Diamond

I am an actor, published author,sketchbook library artist, model, award nominated singer/songwriter, IT specialist, entrepreneur, wife and mother.

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