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Analysis Of The Ombuds Program

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Arkansas is one of the states that does not do allot of offender mediation programs in communities or cities. However, in 2009, Arkansas tried to promote a restorative justice program that would imposed unique sanctions on offenders through the criminal courts (Brantley, 2009). The program had a faith-based component and was not imposed on the offender but rather both victim and offender must be willingly to participate (Brantley, 2009).
Today most of the offender mediation programs are operated by Universities and schools. The University of Arkansas has a program named Ombus that participates in projects with the restorative justice program that is administered through the Office of Community Standards and Student Ethics. Ombud …show more content…

will utilize a repayment in which the offender makes restitution to a symbolic victim by working for the community on work crews (Youth Justice, 2017).
Victim offender mediation works to bring conflicting parties together to engage in speaking and hopefully negotiating a mutually agreeable solution (Dhami, 2016). Research shows that the most common outcome of victim offender mediation is an apology and is often expected by the parties (Dhami, 2016). Victims may decide on the mediation process to teach the offender a lesson in accountability. During the process, typically the offender is required to admit responsibility, acknowledge harm, express remorse, promise they will not do the offense again, and offer some form of restitution (Dhami, 2016).
The violation of law is not the sole focus in the restorative process. It is an attempt to repair the harm of the offense by having those directly involved mutually agree how the offender can best compensate or restore their victim, community, and self (Saxon, 2013). Traditional methods of justice often remove the victim from the community and relies only on the direction of laws to impose sentences on the offender (Saxon, 2013). One of the major drawbacks of this process is that it empowers victims, offenders, and communities in making the sentencing agreement and may result in some offenders being sentenced more harshly for the same crime another person committed (Saxon, 2013).
Victim offender

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