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Restorative Justice: pushing the barriers

Restorative Justice: pushing the barriers College of Mediators conference, 2 July 2010, South Bank University Dr. Theo Gavrielides IARS Director, Visiting Senior Research Fellow Open University (UK), Visiting Scholar Mount Royal University (Canada). Synopsis:.

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Restorative Justice: pushing the barriers

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  1. Restorative Justice: pushing the barriers College of Mediators conference, 2 July 2010, South Bank University Dr. Theo Gavrielides IARS Director, Visiting Senior Research Fellow Open University (UK), Visiting Scholar Mount Royal University (Canada) Empowering Young People to Influence Policy & Practice

  2. Synopsis: • Definitions & (mis)understandings • Why restorative justice? • Standards versus innovation? • Being serious about restorative justice • What’s next? Empowering Young People to Influence Policy & Practice

  3. Definitions • Definitional ambiguity & conceptual fault-lines (Gavrielides 2008) • "Restorative justice is an ethos with practical goals, among which is to restore the harm done by including all affected parties in a process of understanding through voluntary and honest dialogue, and by adopting a fresh approach to conflicts and their control, retaining at the same time certain rehabilitative goals" (Gavrielides 2007). • Practices: Mediation (direct & indirect), family group conferencing, healing and sentencing circles) Empowering Young People to Influence Policy & Practice

  4. Why restorative justice? • Victim satisfaction • Victim monetary/ material compensation • Victim non-material compensation (apology, healing) • Reduction of re-offending (recidivism) • Offender satisfaction • Community impact Empowering Young People to Influence Policy & Practice

  5. Why restorative justice? A cost-benefit analysis: • Based on 342 cases, for every £1 spent on restorative justice, up to £9 was saved in lowering the cost of offending. In total, the 342 cases that were processed through restorative justice saved the criminal justice system £7.29m (Shaplant et al 2008: Ministry of Justice Research Series 10/08) • Miers et al (2001) £177 – £712 per case, Holdaway et al (2001) £410 per case • The average cost per person proceeded against in the courts is £2,700 (Home Office 1999). Empowering Young People to Influence Policy & Practice

  6. Empowering Young People to Influence Policy & Practice

  7. Standards versus innovation? • “While it is good that we are now having debates on standards for RJ it is a dangerous debate. Accreditation for mediators that raises the spectre of a Western accreditation agency telling an Aboriginal elder that a centuries old restorative practice does not comply with the accreditation standards is a profound worry” (Braithwaite 2002) • Internal standards (within the project), national, international Empowering Young People to Influence Policy & Practice

  8. Being serious about restorative justice • Restorative justice may not be punitive but has implications for the offender, the victim, the community: • Risks to suspects (principle of voluntariness, presumption of innocence human rights principle, coercion) • Double jeopardy (Article 6 Human Rights Act) • Risks to child defendants • Principle of proportionality (sentencing) • Power imbalances (gender, age, race, socio-economic status) • Re-vicitimisation Empowering Young People to Influence Policy & Practice

  9. Standards versus innovation? • “Top down standards” (e.g. Legislated, monopolised) • “Bottom up or local level standards” • Constraining values: fundamental procedural safeguards (empowerment, respectful listening etc) • Maximising standards: healing and restoration (property, dignity – promoted and encouraged. • Emergent standards: remorse, apology - allowed to emerge without being forced Empowering Young People to Influence Policy & Practice

  10. Innovative restorative practice • Innovation, standards and accreditation are complementary • Restorative justice is community born – this must be accommodated. Top down approaches will fail • Innovative examples • Hate crime (e.g. Hate Crime Project, SMC) • Post sentencing and in prisons (MEREPS, IARS, Foresee, Hungary, Germany and Belgium) • Sexual Offending (Canada, Austria, IARS) • Domestic violence (University of Athens – IARS) Empowering Young People to Influence Policy & Practice

  11. What’s next? • “Working in partnership: pushing the barriers of restorative justice project • Expert seminar, November 2010 • Consultation and evidence building • University auspices • Independent • Bottom up • Flexible and community based Empowering Young People to Influence Policy & Practice

  12. Dr. Theo Gavrielides T.Gavrielides@iars.org.uk Independent Academic Research Studies (IARS) Waterloo Business Centre 117 Waterloo Road, London SE1 8UL  Office line 20 7960 0219, Fax: 020 7921 0036 www.iars.org.uk Empowering Young People to Influence Policy & Practice

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