Restorative Justice Week 2009

Events

National Restorative Justice Symposium
"Communities Responding to Human Need"
and National Ron Wiebe Award Ceremony

Restorative Justice and Victim/Offender Mediation within the Canadian Correctional System

November 19, 2009

National Restorative Justice Symposium
Communities Responding to Human Needs

CSC’s RJ Definition

Restorative Justice

Restorative justice is a non-adversarial, non-retributive approach to justice that emphasizes healing in victims, meaningful accountability of offenders, and the involvement of citizens in creating healthier, safer communities.

RJ Division’s Definition

Restorative Justice

In the face of crime or conflict, restorative justice is a philosophy and approach that views these matters as principally harm done to people and relationships.  It strives to provide support and safe opportunities for voluntary participation and communication between those affected (victims, offenders and community) to encourage accountability, reparation and movement towards understanding, feelings of satisfaction, healing, safety and closure.

RJ Values and Principles

• Address Harm Done
• Inclusion
• Accountability
• Safety
• Transformation
• Voluntary
• Interaction
• Choice
• Holistic

RJ in CSC

Grande Cache Restorative Justice Living Unit
October 2001 – November 2005

• Offenders apply to lived on RJU
  • RJU coordinator provides info upon intake
  • Those interested screened by RJU inmates
• Voluntary Participation
• Making a personal choice to redirect their lives
• RJU is an Intense Supervision Unit - Drug Free
• Challenged residents to practice restorative justice values and principles in daily living
• Guards - civilian clothing and RJ trained<
• RJU Environment
• RJU Peer Mediators
• Weekly RJU Coalition Meetings

Grande Cache RJU Research

• 110 offenders (2001 until February 2005)
• 90 received an offender survey
• 20 offenders were randomly selected to complete interviews
• 2 comparison groups:
  • WHI RJ Coalition (n=28)
  • Bowden Institution Annex (n=102)
• Matched on age, level of risk, and offence severity

GC RJU Research

• Research Questions
  • Impact on Understanding of Crime and Harm
  • Remorse and Desire to Make Reparation
  • Impact on Institutional Behaviour
  • Impact on Releases from Prison
• Key Findings
  • Increased level of empathy, remorse, and understanding of the offence
  • Minor conflicts were resolved informally
  • Offender completed more programs
  • Successes on release were similar to comparison groups

http://www.csc-scc.gc.ca/text/rsrch/reports/r189/r189-eng.shtml

• RJU Lessons Learned
• Continuous education and training to address competing styles of corrections within the same institution
• Communication protocols between the RJU staff and institutional staff
• Create sustainable links with the external community
• Create legitimate opportunities for the offenders to “make right” for their offences
• RJ continuity into the community

RJ in Correctional Environments

• RJ Training
• RJ Coalition
• Pilot Project
• Restorative Opportunities Program

What is Restorative Opportunities?

Restorative Opportunities is a Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) program that offers victims, offenders and community members with an opportunity to enter into some form of dialogue to address the harms caused by serious crime with an experienced facilitator.

• Based on RJ values and principles
• Victim offender mediation services:
  • includes letter/video exchange, shuttle mediation,
  • and/or face to face meeting(s)
• Voluntary
• Participant Driven

Why Participate?

Provides victims, offenders, and communities with an opportunity to choose to be involved in addressing outstanding issues related to harms caused by crime.

For victims, restorative justice assists in identifying and addressing the harm and needs that have arisen from the crime. Restorative justice provides opportunities for victims to: tell the story of their experience; be certain the offender understands the impact of the crime; find answers to questions that are important to them; hold the offender accountable for the harm done; and if possible, identify what can be done to repair the harm.

For offenders, restorative justice provides a forum for the offender to: tell their story; accept responsibility for their actions and acknowledge the harm caused; hear first hand how their behaviour affected others; participate in determining how to repair the harm caused; and take action to repair.

What about Forgiveness?

Forgiveness is not a goal or expected result of a restorative justice process. It may be a by-product in some cases, however it is not explored unless it is raised as a need by the participants during the assessment or preparation phase of the process. Otherwise, the question of forgiveness is left at the participant’s discretion.

Forgiveness is a very personal thing and has different meanings to each individual, therefore it is not required in order to achieve a meaningful interaction for the parties involved.

Restorative Opportunities

Restorative Opportunities (RO)

• Victim Offender Mediation Program (VOMP)
• The Restorative Opportunities Program – 2003
• RO Interim Direction
• Type of Referrals: Victim, Institutional, Community
• Referral Protocols
• RO Mediators
• Process: Assessment, Preparation, Meeting, Follow-Up
• RO Data and VOMP Correctional Results
• Current Events: RO Training 2009 and RO Draft Policy Guidelines 784-2.

RO Referrals (ATL, QC, ON & PRA)

RO Referrals

VOMP Correctional Results 2009 (PAC)

• VOMP has completed 165 face-to-face meetings for CSC involving 110 offender participants
• 100% of the offences mediated were serious offences.  These included: 
  • 48% murder / manslaughter,
  • 33% sexual assaults,
  • 6% assaults,
  • 3% attempted murder, and
  • 3% robbery.
• Most offender participants are high risk (n= 57)
• Most offender participants are high (n= 44) and medium need (n=44)

VOMP Correctional Results 2009 (PAC)

Suspensions

Of the 73 offenders who were either on release when they participated in VOM or who were subsequently released,

• 86% had not been suspended within 1 year of their face to face meeting.
• 81% had not been suspended within 2 years of their face to face meeting.
• By Year 5, 74% had not been suspended.

Revocations

Of the 73 offenders who were either on release when they participated in VOM or who were subsequently released,

• 95% had not been revoked within 1 year of their face to face meeting
• 86% had not been revoked within 2 years of their face to face meeting.
• By Year 5, 81% had not been revoked.

Recidivism

Of the 73 offenders who were either on release when they participated in VOM or who were subsequently released,

• 96% had not re-offended within 1 year of their face to face meeting.
• 85% had not re-offended within 5 years of their face to face meeting.
• By Year 10, 84% had not re-offended.