Free Law Dissertations - Restorative Justice Is One Of The Most Talked About Developments In The
Restorative justice is one of the most talked about developments in the province of crime and justice. Its proponents maintain that retributive justice, society’s customary response to crime, neither meets the needs of crime victims nor avoids re-offending. Rather, it assumes a detached, adversarial process and ‘sees crime as a violation of the state, defined by law breaking and the establishing of guilt. It determines blame and administers punishment in a contest between the offender and the state.’ As an alternative, they propose, should be restorative justice, in which families and communities of offenders encourage them to take responsibilities for the effect of their actions, convey repentance and repair the harm that they have caused:
Restorative justice encourages all of us involved in the criminal justice system to see justice in a new light. In many cases it helps victims of crime have a say in what happens to an offender. It can also be part of the rehabilitation process for offenders themselves.
Restorative justice is about helping every victim get over the crime they’ve suffered. When a victim chooses to meet the offender it often helps them feel safer and more satisfied that justice has been done.
So as we reform the criminal justice system to put victims and communities first, restorative justice should have a key place at the heart of our reforms.
The essential elements of restorative justice represent a process based, among other things, on principles of participation, respect, honesty, accountability and empowerment. As recognised by the Home Office, restorative justice is not a ‘unified concept.’ Restorative processes involve victims, offenders, their families and the community, ‘to collectively identify and address harms, needs and obligations, in order to heal and put things as right as possible. This was established in Johnathan Carter’s case, where the restorative justice process resulted in a harmony that went some way to remedying the harm caused to the victims, whilst also recognising the harm that the offender had brought upon himself. The conference acknowledged the needs of the family, some of which were at odds with sentencing practice at that time, and balanced these with the needs of the community. Restorative justice is therefore process rather than outcome driven. This paper examines the key claims about what victims want in relation to crime, and what the public thinks they should have in relation to the disposition of apprehended offenders.
Victims are broadly documented as the neglected party in the criminal justice process. Neither their requirements nor their preferences are frequently taken into account in the prosecution and sentencing and offenders.
