Category Archives: crime victims

Oprah Winfrey Network reprises ‘Confronting’ series featuring victim-offender face-to-face conferences

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Victim-offender conferences are a primary tool used in restorative justice programs. Tonight (Sept. 17, 2011) at 10 p.m. Eastern time, the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) will reprise its Confronting series, featuring an example of a victim-offender conference.

Tonight’s episode features the face-to-face meeting between a mother whose son was killed on his prom night and the woman whose impaired driving under the influence caused his death.

According to the OWN website:

“Confronting… documents the powerful and sometimes painful mediation process, where victim and offender come together to find some measure of closure. Mediation programs currently exist in 48 states across the country, and with each encounter the results are dramatic and life changing for both the victim and the offender. Every episode will follow both victim and offender as they prepare to come together, face to face, for the most important conversation of their lives.”

At the risk of seeming picky, practitioners of restorative justice often differentiate between the term “mediation” and the process they call “victim-offender conferencing,”  although the face-to-face conferences certainly involve elements of mediation.  The terminology has evolved as restorative practices have been introduced and followed.

Here is a sneak preview of tonight’s program.

http://www.oprah.com/common/omplayer_embed.html?article_id=30608

Unfortunately, access to this excellent program is limited to pay-TV subscribers whose cable packages include Oprah’s network. It’s another example of the digital divide.
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Strength in numbers: a case for more I.T. to bolster Restorative Justice

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On Tuesday, June 7, advocates of a restorative approach to criminal justice will begin arriving in Raleigh, NC, for the 3rd National Conference on Restorative Justice (RJ).   Speakers from around the world will bring their perspectives.

Fairnessworks.com is honored to be working with United Community Builders, a loose consortium of restorative justice practitioners, trainers, journalists and a systems analyst to present a case for strengthening the RJ community through wider user of information technology (I.T.).   Deb Galerneau-Scanlon will tackle these issues in a proposal for a new RJ360 Initiative.

It’s often said that information is power.  The creator of this Power Point presentation – The Business of RJ- the RJ360 Initiative — adds that actionable information leads to knowledge, and intelligently analyzed information leads to wisdom.

The full program for the three-day conference is available at www.restorativejusticenow.org

 

Data circles for an I.T. approach to Restorative Justice

Deb Galerneau-Scanlon's concentric circle concept for the use of hard numbers in R.J.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Healing Power of Storytelling in Sudan: Another Gem from Odyssey Networks

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Milcah Lalam is a peace building development specialist who serves in war-torn countries, focusing on the devastating trauma of war. She specializes in helping victims of rape and abuse, women, children and the many people who are displaced by endless war in their homelands.

In her work with RECONCILE International (Resource Centre for Civil Leadership), she helps survivors of a wide range of war-related trauma work toward healing through the process of storytelling, whether through words, drama or visual arts. Listen as she describes an example of reconciliation and the reunification of a family, even after the attempted murder of a husband by his enraged wife.

http://www.kaltura.com/index.php/kwidget/wid/0_nkrnen0f/uiconf_id/48501

Click here to subscribe to Odyssey Networks, a multi-faith media coalition.

High Court Decision on Prison Overcrowding: A New Focus on Alternatives to Lock-Up?

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When I heard the news about the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision May 24 to order California to reduce its prison population by 30,000 inmates, I contacted a longtime friend, Susan Bausch, for her take on the decision.  Susan works in the criminal court system, in the neutral role of staff attorney for criminal judges.  I am pleased to share her comments with you.  -Ken Kimsey.

Despite the fact that the crime rate has been dropping in the United States for a number of years, this country’s prison population has continued to swell. In a move that entirely surprised me, given the Court’s current make-up, the United States Supreme Court ordered California to release at least 30,000 of its inmates due to overcrowding. It held that conditions in many of California prisons violated the inmates’ right to be free from cruel and unusual punishment. Specifically, it looked at whether the prisoners’ needs for medical and mental health care were being met; it determined that the very limited services being provided fell below the standard of decency required by the Eighth Amendment.

The Court did what no elected politician would ever dare to do: it is letting some of the “bad guys” out. This opens up the possibility for California and all other states to reconsider why it put these people in prison in the first place and to explore whether better, cheaper, more socially productive means of controlling crime exists.

I work in the criminal court system, in the neutral role of staff attorney for criminal judges. Over the years, I have watched the criminals come and go, in and out of the system, and back in again. Neither the system nor the individuals caught up in it change or improve. So many of the people who stand before the bench awaiting the pronouncement of sentence are drug addicts, alcoholics, mentally ill, uneducated, unskilled, unemployable and often a combination of several of these things. What many of them are not is dangerous.  According to Wikipedia, only about half of all persons in state prisons are there for violent crimes. Yet we lock the nonviolent ones up too, often for years at a time, costing us an estimated $50,000 of already scarce public resources for each inmate each year. And, when these prisoners emerge from the system, they are not more equipped to live a lawful, useful life, but less so, and are thus highly likely to commit more crimes.

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Surely, even if our goal is solely to prevent more crime, rather than the more humanitarian one of helping disadvantaged persons, there must be alternatives to prison, alternatives that would cost less and do more. This sentiment is catching on, even among conservative Republicans who just a few years earlier would have been unwilling to look “soft on crime.” Presidential candidate Newt Gingrich has said, with regard to prison alternatives, “It is new thinking, it’s different thinking, it’s not being soft versus being hard.”  Florida’s new tea-party-leaning Republican Governor Rick Scott has proposed reforms that would provide services and education to inmates to reduce recidivism. There is a conservative group called “Right on Crime” espousing new ideas and alternatives. Even in “lock ‘em up” Texas, the legislature has decided against building new prisons because of the cost and has instead been looking for new solutions. (www.wbur.org/2011/03/30/tough-on-crime).

While it may be that these conservatives are more focused budget issues than helping the disadvantaged, those committed to criminal justice reform because their hearts are in it should not scoff at these new proposals coming from those who have traditionally been their adversaries.  The time seems ripe for a redirection of resources into mental health facilities, drug treatment centers, job training programs and community control sentences that would allow offenders to stay out of prison while being closely supervised and receiving critical services to help them to avoid committing further crimes.

The transition to a non-incarcerative system will be fought by many vested interests.  Building and staffing prisons is big business, especially in many rural counties across the South. The Families Against Mandatory Minimums (FAMM), a national sentencing reform advocacy group based in  Washington, DC, has said that in California, the politically powerful prison guards’ union, the California Correctional Peace Officers Association, has opposed policies that could result in any decline in the prisoner population, thus ensuring steady employment for its members. [Left and Right Join in Support of Fairer Sentences for ALL Crack Offenders Similar opposition will be raised elsewhere by people whose jobs are at stake and by people who are genuinely afraid that letting the “bad guys” out will increase violence in their neighborhoods.

Change is always hard. But we can’t possibly continue down the same path we are on, with an ever-higher and higher percentage of our population behind bars. It costs far too much, in far more than mere financial terms.

–Susan Bausch

 

 

 

 

 

‘Beyond Prisons’ shines a light on alternatives to prison

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For anyone interested in alternatives to prison — as in, something other than “lock ‘em up and throw away the key” — there’s a gold mine of information and insight into the criminal justice system in the current issue of … Continue reading →

A Restorative Justice Success Story from the U.K.

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Another day, another restoration.

Saturday’s issue of The Guardian features an interview (<— it’s important that you click here) with a crime victim and the chemically-dependent man who burglarized her home. As the reporter points out, this interview occurred after both parties had participated in Restorative Justice processes. Although victim-offender conferences are a central part of the process, the peacemaking circle at the heart of the process is much more comprehensive and intensive, involving family members, representatives of the local community and the justice system.

The fact that this Guardian interview could take place at all is testament to the successful outcomes available through restorative processes.

Picture of UK success in Restorative Justice

Reggie and Kathleen (who didn’t want to give her surname). Photograph: David Sillitoe for the Guardian

In the U.K., the Ministry of Justice is in the midst of major reforms. One of those reforms will be an increased reliance on restorative principles. A Green Paper focusing on addiction quotes a former inmate describing his experience with the process:

“I was in prison waiting to be sentenced. I was asked to meet some people face-to-face who I had burgled to get money for drugs. I only did it to get out of the cell for an hour, I thought it would be easy. But it was different. When you hear about the damage you have done, when you feel the harm you have caused, you have to be a very, very bitter and twisted person for this not to affect you. I have had easier days at the Old Bailey.”

Peter Woolf, rehabilitated repeat offender in testimony to the Centre for Social Justice

“Old Bailey” is the Central Criminal Court in England, named for the street in which it stands. It is a court building in central London, one of a number of buildings housing the Crown Court. The Crown Court sitting at the Central Criminal Court deals with major criminal cases from Greater London and, in exceptional cases, from other parts of England and Wales.

In a terse summation of the case for reform, the authors of the Green Paper conclude:

“Restorative Justice is over-researched and under-utilised. It is proven to be highly effective in increasing victim satisfaction levels and reducing . . . re-offending. To begin to put rehabilitation at the heart of the prison system we will introduce Restorative Justice Conferences to enhance justice for victims and begin the process of life change for prisoners.”

Beyond Phenomenal Forgiveness: A Mother’s Relationship with Her Son’s Killer

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Victim-offender Johnson Israel

Mary Johnson, 59, spoke with Oshea Israel, 34, at StoryCorps in Minneapolis.

Ginny H., a friend of this blog, shared this story (<—click here) from National Public Radio's StoryCorps. If you missed the NPR broadcast this morning, I urge you to invest the time to read and listen to this story. It begins with the gang-related murder of her son, Laramiun Byrd, and it extends from a conscious decision to forgive the killer to developing a loving relationship with him.

For people who champion Restorative Justice, this can only be a story of inspiration. Involving victims and offenders in restorative conferences early on might increase the likelihood of phenomenal outcomes like these. It is not an easy process, and not everyone in the justice system will even be willing to consider restorative options. But the story of Mary Johnson and Oshea Israel stands as a testimony to what is sometimes possible.

If you’re involved in neighborhood justice, or the local justice system — or, if you are just a concerned citizen who wants something more than orange jump suits for offenders, followed by the release of angry inmates into your community — and, if you think crime victims deserve a time of deep listening to their pain by the offender, the justice system and the community, maybe you will want to investigate local options for Restorative Justice (RJ).

RJ offers no easy grace or instantaneous forgiveness. It entails a difficult process to repair harms done, and to restore victims and offenders to a more compassionate community. The current system of warehousing of prisoners and neglecting crime victims does not seem to be working at all well. Is it time to investigate alternatives?

Parents of Troubled Teens — Start Your Search Here

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Parents of troubled teens, and their teachers and counselors, live with the likelihood that their rapidly maturing children might soon face the court system.  Suddenly the child who seemed so full of promise might face the very real prospect of facing a juvenile court referral.  From that point, the probability of having a child in the justice system is a nagging threat.  The fear is always lurking that their “golden child”, their beloved son or daughter,  might soon face expulsion for bullying, or become a defendant in a bullying case.  Some, who fear that the taunts of their children’s classmates may be true, and that their child might really be gay, lesbian, or transgendered, worry that their kids might be bullied and suffer lifelong scars, or even death.

[amazon_enhanced asin="0979841127" /]In 21st Century America, the threat of violence is always a possibility.  Even middle-class, peaceful families know that they are not immune.  Not only in America, but in Canada, England, Australia, New Zealand…in any so-called developed nation around the world, parents walk a thin line between responding to classroom discipline and facing an escalation in the system’s treatment of their child.

At fairnessworks.p1r8.net, we are looking for ways of bringing concerned parents into constructive contact — early in the process, before “juvie” or jail  — with methods of intervention and conflict resolution which can save the future of their troubled teens.  The goal of this blog is to link parents like these with well-established methods of responding to youth crises, such as Restorative Justice and peacemaking circles.  Creating a Culture of Care in the schools is a possible solution, with practitioners who know how to implement these programs.  Hope for restoration is not a false hope, and the possibility of linking to alternatives to punitive and retributive justice is a viable option.

We include a wealth of links to alternative methods at fairnessworks.  Look at the categories and tags in the column at right, click on them, read and follow up on them, if you are the parent (or concerned adult) in the life of a troubled teenager.  Post your comments here and reach out for help.  If you have read this far, you are a “seat-of-the-pants peacemaker,” and you are NOT alone.  You are the person we want to reach at fairnessworks.p1r8.net.

As the editor and publisher of this blog, I am not the counselor you might need.  But I will do my best to link you to the help you are seeking.  Remember, you are not alone.
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Wise Words from Men to Men

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Men Stopping Violence is a strong presence here in the Atlanta, GA, area.  They’re all about accountability and responsibility, and their programs draw on the higher instincts in men to end violence and abuse of women.  Chapter of MSV are all over the world.
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Men Stopping Violence is not a “bumper sticker” organization.  They’re not about “lock ‘em up and throw away they key.”  They are not afraid to do the hard work of helping men of all ages look deep into themselves for their own reasons for committing violence against women.  It’s painful, courageous work.  It’s a lot harder than simply putting offenders in orange jumpsuits and warehousing them in jails.

Sometimes the first step to making peace is simply not committing violence.  Sometimes that first step is not so simple.  Training and peer support helps immensely.  It’s about creating a culture of care.

preventing domestic violence and violence againsst women through peer counseling and support

Men Stopping Violence worldwide offers training and counseling to prevent violence against women.

Men Stopping Violence worldwide is an indispensable resource in addressing the causes of violence, looking first within to the hidden justifications for the abuse and humiliating treatment of women.

A Visionary Judge Makes Restorative Justice Come Alive in Alabama

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I was intrigued when a recent online search included a hit posing this question: “What if lawyers were Peacemakers, Problem Solvers and Healers of  Conflict?”

Alabama judge employs Restorative Justice in Montgomery court

Judge Tracey McCooey

A few clicks later and I was listening to Judge Tracey McCooey, who serves on the bench of Alabama’s 15th Judicial Circuit Court in Montgomery, on the website Cutting Edge Law.  (More on that in an upcoming post.)

In a six-part video series, Judge McCooey talks passionately about her believe that justice requires much more than the court system provides, especially in the area of giving crime victims the opportunity to meet the offenders, face-to-face, in a safe place, and to do so on a voluntary basis.  (If you walk out of here and find someone has stolen your car radio, chances are you don’t have much interest in meeting the thief, she says in one segment.  But the more deeply you have been hurt, the more likely you want to meet the offender and ask questions like “why?”.)

As appealing as her speaking style and warmth is her story about the unorthodox path that led her to the bench.  Serving as a judge was never in her long-range plans, but when she won her first election against a well-established Montgomery lawyer, surprising herself in the process, she knew there were some new thing she wanted to try.  Finding ways of implementing a restorative justice program was among them, and she set about methodically but quietly to make this happen.

Watch this series if you’d like to meet a judge who approaches her calling 24/7, who believes in the power of personal interaction — which has included working closely with offenders as they pick up trash, and spending her Saturday afternoons quilting with people who have passed through the drug court.

Watch the entire series, if you prefer, on this page of the Cutting Edge Law website.

To see how thoroughly the Montgomery court has integrated restorative justice principles into their programs, be sure to visit the court’s website.