Essay On Restorative Justice System

Australian prison populations are increasing, putting enormous financial burdens on the government. In the meantime, there is recognition that imprisonment does not achieve some of the stated objectives that are important, and, also harmful - to offenders, their families and in the long run, to the community. Historically, imprisonment (criminal sanctions) are used to serve four main purposes, “(1) deterring the offender and others like him, (2) protecting the public (community) by restraining the offender, (3) rehabilitating the offender, and (4) punishing the offender” (Birney, 2012). The statement that we need to build more jails and keep offenders in longer if we want to reduce crime is

Restorative justice is an innovative approach to the criminal justice system that focuses on repairing the harm caused by crimes committed. The methods used in the conventional justice system may deter the offender from committing further crimes, but it does neither repair the harm caused, nor help them acknowledge their responsibility, instead it stigmatises them, worsening the situation instead of improving it (Johnstone 2003). “Stigmatisation is the kind of shaming that creates outcasts; it is disrespectful, humiliating” (p.85). It breaks the moral bonds between offender and community and can result in the creation of a destructive cycle that may result in fear and isolation. The shaming by stigmatisation creates a negative effect which

According to Restorative Justice Benefits Victims and Offenders by Jeff Anderson says, "Restorative justice is a successful alternative to sending offenders to prison. Imprisonment often does little to rehabilitate the criminal or repair the

During the research for this discussion board, I found that there were many devils advocates that view restorative justice as infringing on the First Amendment’s Establishment Clause. As Lucas noted, restorative justice does not hinge on a specific religion but rather on the notion of accountability. For this reason, it should be viewed as a viable option towards Criminal Justice reform as it can harmonize competing perspectives. Currently, the Criminal Justice system utilizes retributive justice as a means of deterrence and, as a result, has pushed jails and prisons to be more like warehouses of human beings. The key to reform lies in changing one’s view towards delinquency, offenders, victims and accountability for crimes.

To understand the relationship between restorative justice and the criminal justice system in England and Wales, we first must look to its historical background as a theory and its definition. The idea of restorative justice first came to fruition in the 1970’s with the work of Barnett (1970) and Eglash (1977). Its prevalence within the criminal justice system was still limited however, until the more recent works of Marshall (1985) and Zehr (1990), where its importance as a potential policy was more widely regarded as beneficial. Its definition is yet to be agreed upon, among the academic elite, however according to LLeywelyn and Hause (1998) its main elements include voluntariness, truth telling and face to face encounters.

The criminal justice system is a set of agencies and processes established by governments to control crime and impose penalties on those who violate laws. Different jurisdictions have diverse laws, agencies, and ways of managing criminal justice processes. In recent years, it has been debated that the criminal justice system has two primary and possibility conflicting perspectives known as the retributive justice approach and the restorative justice approach. Retributive justice and restorative justice have contrasting approaches when imposing punishment, that will be explored within this research paper, in regards to the disadvantages and potential advantages resulting from the implementation of it’s polices within the criminal justice system. These two perspectives have been implemented amongst many different criminal justice systems internationally, however the questions still remain, what is justice? And how should justice be served? This debate has created a divide between countries, due to the differing interpretations of justice and it’s response to criminal activity. The statistical information has been extracted from various online sources listed within the references as well as primary and secondary sources, “Prisons” by Haley, James and “Alternatives to Prisons” by Jennifer Skancke.

Most importantly, it has been proven to reduce reoffending rates. In an analysis done by the Ministry of Justice between 2008 and 2011, it was found that those offenders who participated in restorative justice committed 23% less offences than other offenders and also had a 12% lower rate of reoffending than other offenders in a twelve-month

After reading the article on school violence and the restorative justice approach, I feel that restorative justice is a positive approach towards handling violence. As mentioned in the article, in the past, students often experienced formal punishments, such as suspensions, for their misbehavior or negative actions. In other words, students often were immediately punished for their actions potentially without explanations. Therefore, this restorative justice approach seems like a good idea because it brings awareness towards issues or consequences from these issues and provides explanations for better ways of handling situations. This approach seems similar to the authoritative parenting approach, which includes high levels of responsiveness

The main benefit of this system is having prison as a last resort, and having both parties settle the dispute without the traditional criminal justice system(Dalton 05/12/16). However, the drawbacks of the Restorative Justice theory are actually implementing the system because if the population is too big the implementation of probation might not be accepted by the community; plus, it's hard to implement this theory of correction in large societies with large groups of offenders(Dalton 05/12/16). For instance, evidence of this theory of correction has been seen with the case of Lenard when he became a victim of being severely hit in the head, and knocked off his bike by a group of teenagers when he was hanging out on the rich side of town(Bogira 64). Lenard showed the stages of rehabilitation to community, and victim because he received a new house in a nice neighborhood while Caruso received a medium security sentencing for 8 years which ended up turning into 3.5 years because the prison was overcrowded. All harms were rectified and injured parties were restored(Kurbin 274) which was shown by the picture with Lenard and Caruso both smiling together after the incident given the impression that all was forgiven(Bogira 340). Additionally, it is stated that, “the two guys came together and began to heal”(Bogira 340) meaning that the Restorative Justice theory was in full effect for this case in regards to rehabilitation to community and victim as well as restoration of the individual(the convict) into the community after he provided restitution in the form of prison

With regards to restorative justice and exploring the relevance it has in relation to the professional practice of Social Care outlined in this assignment you will find reference to Howard Zehr and both his definition and description of restorative justice. Through analysing his work we begin to see a similarity between restorative justice and social care in terms of ethos, values, and best professional practices. Firstly I would like to bring your attention to the field of Social Care, and address the underlying philosophies within this professional practice. Throughout the process of my research it has become increasingly evident that there is an absence of a mainstream and generalised definition of what it means to be a Social Care worker. The Irish Association of Social Care Education

The criminal justice system views any crime as a crime committed against the state and places much emphasis on retribution and paying back to the community, through time, fines or community work. Historically punishment has been a very public affair, which was once a key aspect of the punishment process, through the use of the stocks, dunking chair, pillory, and hangman’s noose, although in today’s society punishment has become a lot more private (Newburn, 2007). However it has been argued that although the debt against the state has been paid, the victim of the crime has been left with no legal input to seek adequate retribution from the offender, leaving the victim perhaps feeling unsatisfied with the criminal justice process.

Restorative justice has some key restorative values that are vital in the restorative justice conference to make the experience ‘restorative’. Concerning addressing victim needs and concerns means for listening, respecting, being non-judgmental, not blaming the victim and apologizing. The RJ system was bought as an alternative to the criminal justice system to give greater emphasis on victim rights and needs, offender accountability and community involvement. Throughout the essay, there will be an insight into how Restorative Justice addresses needs of victims in terms of the different proponents such as Information provided to victim, restitution/compensation, emotional and practical needs met, participation and involvement of victim and protection of victim, which (Wemmers and Marisa, 2002) as essentials to victims participating in the practice. The two countries that will be addressed will have had restorative justice built out of injustices and over-representation of the current criminal justice system to the indigenous peoples of those countries.

Procedural justice under the theory of restorative justice will consist of a family group conference including Torres, John Geer’s father, mother, daughters, and Maura Harrington. The purpose of the conference is not to mediate or moderate a discussion between the two sides (Zehr, 2002). Rather, the purpose of a restorative conference between Torres and Geer family is to create an opportunity for the Geer family to directly tell the Torres how John Geer’s death personally affected them (Newmark, 2017c). Alternatively, Torres has the to agree to repair the damage he caused to the Geer family and rehabilitate himself. Therefore, it is imperative that Torres first admits guilt and takes responsibility for the shooting death of John Geer before

When considering studies in corrections on a global scale it is important to understand how to utilize the most applicable method to gather knowledge. Comparative studies are often used to explore methods for explicating or developing knowledge and attitudes. Comparative research examines cases with the intention to reveal the structure and invariance or unchanging relationship for an entire group or population. In this case, and for the purpose of this paper, the comparative research is suggested to be used in corrections on a global scale. Several problems arise when using comparative research studies on a global scale. Some of these issues are cross-cultural research between countries, selecting a compatible research design whether

To what extent has the theory of restorative justice been integrated into Youth Justice practice in England and Wales? Has this gone far enough?