Victim-offender Reconciliation Research Articles

RESTORATIVE JUSTICE AS AN ALTERNATIVE TO SETTLEMENT OF MISDEMEANOR CRIMES: A CASE STUDY

This article examines the utilization of restorative justice as an alternative to misdemeanor crimes in the criminal justice system at the Police sector Purwareja Klampok level. The aim of this research is to analyze the effectiveness and challenges faced in implementing the principles of restorative justice to address criminal offenses at the Police sector level. This research adopts a normative juridical approach and utilizes both secondary and primary data sources. Secondary data is obtained through literature research, while primary data is gathered through observations and interviews, involving key stakeholders such as police officers, victims, offenders, and community members, to obtain a comprehensive understanding of the implementation of restorative justice in Police sector Purwareja Klampok. The findings of this study highlight the potential benefits of restorative justice in facilitating victim-offender reconciliation, involving the community, and promoting rehabilitation. Additionally, the research reveals limitations and barriers in the application of restorative justice, including limited resources, inadequate awareness and understanding among stakeholders, and the need for capacity development and training. Based on data analysis, this article provides recommendations to enhance the implementation of restorative justice at the Police sector Purwareja Klampok level. In conclusion, this research contributes to the existing literature on restorative justice by offering insights into its application as an alternative to misdemeanor crimes in the criminal justice system at the Police sector Purwareja Klampok level. The study emphasizes the importance of promoting a more balanced and comprehensive approach to justice that focuses on repairing harm, fostering accountability, and restoring social harmony within the community. Keywords: restorative justice, misdemeanor, implementation of restorative justice, social improvement, police sector.

Dissemination of Mechanisms for Handling Criminal Cases in Criminal Procedure Law

Introduction: Crime is a social symptom of society. Crime grows and develops along with the growth and development of society. Policies in the use of criminal law are closely correlated with criminalization.Purposes of Devotion: Provide understanding to the community in Kilo 9 Village, Kawatu Hamlet, West Seram Regency (SBB), about the mechanism of handling cases of general crimes in Criminal Procedure Law. Method of Devotion: Conducting surveys and discussions to obtain the information needed and set goals in socialization activities. At the preparatory stage is also carried out preparing the material.Results of the Devotion: The implementation of community service activities in the village of RTKilo 9, West Seram district (SBB), can be found and it is known that the mechanism of handling cases in Criminal Procedure Law, including; preliminary examination stage examination stage in the trial, the stage of Criminal implementation, especially criminal Agency of Inter-Institutional Relations in the process of resolving cases and criminal case settlement Model according to Restorative Justice, consists of Victim-Offender Reconciliation or Mediaton Programs (VORP), Sentencing circles or Healing circles, and Prisoner Assistance Programs.

The Right of Participation and The Legal Representation of Mentally Competent Child in the Process of Victim-Offender Reconciliation

Ayırt etme gücüne sahip çocuk, her ne kadar belli işlemler bakımından kanunî temsilcinin rızasına veya katılımına ihtiyaç duysa da tarafı olduğu fail- mağdur uzlaştırması da dâhil kendisini ilgilendiren her türlü karar sürecine katılım hakkına sahiptir. Bu bağlamda uzlaştırmanın her aşamasında çocuk, uzlaştırmanın yürüyüşü ve sonuçları konusunda bilgilendirilmelidir. Çocuğun görüşlerini açıklamasına imkân tanınmalı ve görüşlerine çocuğun menfaatine olduğu sürece öncelik verilmelidir. Buna karşılık uzlaştırma uygulamasına bakıldığında çocuğun katılım hakkının yeterince gözetilmediği görülmektedir. Bu çalışmada uzlaştırma süreci, her bir aşamasının arz ettiği nitelikler gözetilerek incelenmekte, çocuğun kanuni temsiline, katılım hakkına ve çocuğun kanunî temsilcisinin rızası veya katılımına ihtiyaç duymadan yapabileceği işlemlere dair teori ve uygulamada karşılaşılan bazı sorunlu noktalar tespit edilmektedir. Tespit edilen hususlar değerlendirilerek bu sorunlara çocuğun üstün yararı ilkesi ve onarıcı adâlet bağlamında hukukî çözüm önerileri sunulmaktadır.

Predictors and Risk Factors of Armed Robbery Victimisation in Nigeria: An Integrated Theoretical Perspective

The rapidly increasing rate of armed robbery victimisation in Nigeria necessitated the integration of five relevant victimological and sociological/criminological theories in this paper to provide a detailed account of the causal processes and conditions that predict this offending behaviour. The paper is essentially theoretical, relying mainly on library research and review of relevant literature to obtain necessary data and information. It was found that armed robbery, as a social problem, is caused by many factors and the associated risk factors are countless and destructive. Issues raised suggest a policy direction that will ensure a timely and objective incorporation of the global best practices—as enshrined in the Victims’ Bill of Right (VBR), among others, into the Nigerian legal system, so as to effectively combat armed robbery victimisation and related offences. The official introduction of victim impact statements, victim-offender reconciliation, crisis interventions and restorative justice into the Nigerian criminal justice system is also advocated for. Additionally, it is suggested that social service agencies and/or providers should extend their caring services beyond victims of disaster/disease and terrorism to include armed robbery victims, given the alarming nature and extent of this phenomenon in the country.

The Victim-Offender Reconciliation as a Basis for Exemption from Administrative Liability

The Victim-Offender Reconciliation as a Basis for Exemption from Administrative Liability

Restorative justice and probation decisions – an analysis of intentional assault cases in China

ABSTRACTThe restorative justice model focuses on amending offender-victim relations. Compared to Western countries, China's criminal justice policy has relied on both formal and informal mechanisms in dealing with criminal offending. Recently a victim-offender reconciliation (VOR) program has been codified in China to provide incentives for offenders and victims to resolve their disputes through court-guided mediation sessions. Using restorative justice as an interpretive framework and drawing upon 1000 minor intentional assault cases, this study examines the impact of core VOR concepts on probation decisions. Our analysis suggests that offender compensation and attitude were significantly related to the likelihood of receiving probation, and the defense attorney played an unexpected yet impactful role in shaping judges’ probation decisions. Theoretical and policy implications are discussed.

Harmony, Law and Criminal Reconciliation in China: A Historical Perspective

textabstractIn 2012, China revised its Criminal Procedure Law (2012 CPL). One of the major changes is its official approval of the use of victim-offender reconciliation, or ‘criminal reconciliation’ in certain public prosecution cases. This change, on the one hand, echoes the Confucian doctrine that favours harmonious inter-personal relationships and mediation, while, on the other hand, it deviates from the direction of legal reforms dating from the 1970s through the late 1990s. Questions have emerged concerning not only the cause of this change in legal norms but also the proper position of criminal reconciliation in the current criminal justice system in China. The answers to these questions largely rely on understanding the role of traditional informal dispute resolution as well as its interaction with legal norms. Criminal reconciliation in ancient China functioned as a means to centralise imperial power by decentralizing decentralising its administration. Abolishing or enabling such a mechanism in law is merely a small part of the government’s strategy to react to political or social crises and to maintain social stability. However, its actual effect depends on the vitality of Confucianism, which in turn relies on the economic foundation and corresponding structure of society.

Review of Riccardo Berti, Victim-Offender Reconciliation in the People’s Republic of China and Taiwan

Review of Riccardo Berti, Victim-Offender Reconciliation in the People’s Republic of China and Taiwan

Drivers that Change the Direction of Penal Policy: A Case of Developments of Victim—Offender Reconciliation in the Lithuanian Criminal Justice System

The paper presents a recent significant shift in Lithuanian penal policies on non-serious crimes where the punitive approach has given way to the restorative approach. It discusses the preconditions of this change with a particular focus on the attitudes of Lithuanian judicial authorities. In contrary to the common stereotypes and academic opinions that criminal justice system holds onto hard-line policies with a high degree of inertia, the results of the research reveals that prosecutors and judges favor the pragmatic alternative ways for solving victim—offender conflicts. Their approach is based on the conviction that full-scale prosecution and punishment for non-serious crimes often impede primary victims’ needs and places an unreasonable burden on the criminal justice system. This approach allows us to anticipate good perspectives for the implementation of the victim—offender mediation services in the Lithuanian criminal justice system.

Refusing to apologize can have psychological benefits (and we issue no mea culpa for this research finding)

AbstractDespite an understanding of the perception and consequences of apologies for their recipients, little is known about the consequences of interpersonal apologies, or their denial, for the offending actor. In two empirical studies, we examined the unexplored psychological consequences that follow from a harm‐doer's explicit refusal to apologize. Results showed that the act of refusing to apologize resulted in greater self‐esteem than not refusing to apologize. Moreover, apology refusal also resulted in increased feelings of power/control and value integrity, both of which mediated the effect of refusal on self‐esteem. These findings point to potential barriers to victim–offender reconciliation after an interpersonal harm, highlighting the need to better understand the psychology of harm‐doers and their defensive behavior for self‐focused motives. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

On restorative justice practiced in China

The victim-offender reconciliation (VOR), practiced by the basic public security, procuratorates and courts since the advent of 21st century, is a new mode different from the mediation or conciliation in the procedure of civil litigation or of that accessory to the public prosecution in criminal proceeding. This mode connects the criminal justice with the mediation or private reconciliation by themselves. Thus, non-official settlement can influence the criminal justice and the decisions of authoritative agencies. It is beneficial to restore the victim’s interests, urge the offender to repent for his wrongdoings, compensate for the victim’s loss and restore the damaged social relationship. The VOR in China is the same in essence as the Western restorative justice, so it could be regarded as a Chinese mode of global restorative justice movement. Though the VOR mechanism works well, it still brings some matter in further consideration: (a) the legitimacy of VOR; (b) the conflict against the basic concept of crime; (c) the effect to the social reality.

Treatment Strategies for Juvenile Delinquency: Alternative Solutions

Social workers involved in the treatment of adjudicated youth commonly encounter youth sentenced to traditional incarceration or parole as a path to rehabilitation. This article examines alternative treatment strategies for adjudicated youth, namely Victim Offender Reconciliation Programs (often called mediation), Boot Camps, and Wrap-Around Community-Based Care, to help these youth avoid reoffending. While popular with the media, policymakers, or the general public, an evaluation of the literature makes it clear that these programs do not necessarily guarantee lower recidivism rates for program participants. It is evident that further research and evaluation must be done in order to more fully understand the drawbacks and benefits of alternative strategies, and to more appropriately help adjudicated youth and their communities.

Rethinking God, Justice, and Treatment of Offenders

SUMMARY The connection between religious belief, in particular how people in the West have viewed God, and retributive criminal justice practices runs deep. God has been understood to be the basis for the practices of human beings inflicting severe punitive pain upon other human beings judged guilty of violating community standards. God is understood, most of all, to be “holy” (that is, unable to countenance sin of any kind). God's holiness “forces” God to act punitively-and justifies God's agents (either in the church or in society) also acting punitively. This retributive theology dominated Western worldviews in the Middle Ages and formed the bases for criminal justice practices which began to be institutionalized during that time. However, a closer look at the founding document of the Christian tradition, the Bible, challenges such retributive theology. Biblical understandings of justice point more in the direction of restorative than retributive justice. Biblically, “justice” has to do not so much with punishment as with healing, restoring relationships, and fostering the well-being of the entire community. Present-day alternatives to retributive criminal justice are emerging which reflect the general thrust of biblical justice. These include victim-offender reconciliation programs, sentencing circles, and family group conferences. The success of such programs provides encouragement for those who hope for criminal justice practices which effect healing more than simply punitive pain.

Victim-offender- reconciliation: The Danger of Cooptation and a Useful Reconsideration of Law Theory

The conceptual orientation and implementation of Täter-Opfer-Ausgleich (TOA), the German version of Victim-Offender-Reconciliation Programs (VORP), in the criminal and juvenile justice system in Germany brings some dangers with it. It can hide the real nature and character of conflict mediation and prevent elements of restorative justice from giving up their shadowy existence. The practice of TOA for the most part is far from corresponding to the basic idea of conflict resolution and reconciliation as well as to established professional reconciliation standards. Conspicuous is the multiple search for niches of acceptance and an adaptation to inappropriate ideas out of the world of juvenile welfare and criminal law. TOA/VORP in its conception is not the ideal way to foster a restorative justice approach but, on a continuum of possible steps for the treatment of conflicts, it is useful. If victim-offender reconciliation has any essential meaning, it is not because of its modest attempts at practical realization but because it makes the essential tasks of law clear to us.

Mediation as a Basic Element of Crime Control: Theoretical and Empirical Comments

Mediation as a Basic Element of Crime Control: Theoretical and Empirical Comments

Justice as restoration, justice as respect

The causes of the “new retributivism” sweeping America may not be entirely clear but the consequences are becoming so: they include the creation of a massive “corrections‐industrial complex” with a built‐in incentive to expand. Yet this emphasis on punishment often teaches the wrong lesson, fails to hold offenders accountable and ignores victim needs. A variety of “new” responses to crime are addressing the problem of crime in more positive ways; these include Sentencing Circles, Family Group Conferences and Victim Offender Reconciliation. They suggest that the failures of justice lies in the concept itself, the “retributive” paradigm. A “restorative” approach is more in keeping with the needs of victims and offenders and with most cultural traditions. Ultimately, justice must be reframed as making peace, not a war on crime. Crime is essentially about disrespect; justice must be rooted in respect.

Evaluating the Effects of a Victim-Offender Reconciliation Program on Reoffense

This article describes an investigation of the relationship between participation in a Victim-Offender Reconciliation Program (VORP) and reoffense within a year of participation. Three research questions were investigated: (a) What are the characteristics of these antisocial children and adolescents ? (b) What relationships exist between these characteristics ? (c) Do the children and adolescents who participate in the VORP program have lower reoffense rates than those who go through the more traditional juvenile justice approach? Many of the results are consistent with previous research on antisocial children and adolescents. Results also suggest that VORP participants do have lower reoffense rates and that the differences in reoffense rates between the two approaches may depend on family size.

Victim offender reconciliation program for juveniles in Elkhart county, Indiana: An exploratory study

Abstract Victim Offender Reconciliation Program (VORP) is a specific form of conflict resolution between victims and offenders. Mediation and reconciliation make offenders accountable and responsible for their criminal acts and also committed to recompense their victims’ damages. In addition, the process is expected to reduce recidivism among the participating offenders. This study explores the impact of the VORP juvenile restitution program operated by a private agency in Elkhart County, Indiana. Data was collected on 228 juveniles who participated in the program from January, 1987 to December, 1988; thereafter, they were followed through the end of 1990 for recidivism reports. The ‘impact’ of the program was measured in terms of offenders’ repayments to their victims and offender recidivism.

New wine and old wineskins: Four challenges of restorative justice

Dissatisfaction with the current paradigm of criminal justice is leading to new programs with different visions. Some, such as restitution, can be incorporated into existing structures. Others, such as victim-offender reconciliation, point to a possible new approach to criminal justice—restorative justice. In some ways, restorative justice is simply a new application of an ancient vision. It is new wine from old vines. But those of us who celebrate the harvest are advised to remember the parable of new wine and old wineskins. Before we begin to pour—before we insert restorative features into familiar responses to crime—we would do well to reflect on what the consequences may be.

Victim Meets Offender: A Comparative Study on Juveniles and Adults in a Midwestern County

Victim Offender Reconciliation Program (VORP) is a special mode of conflict resolution between victims and offenders. It has appeals to both parties. Face-to-face encounter is the essence of the VORP process. Mediation and reconci-liation make offenders accountable and responsible for their criminal acts and also committed to recompense their victims' damages. In turn, the process is expected to reduce reoffending among the participating offenders. This study compares the impact of a VORP for juveniles and adults in Elkhart County, Indiana. This post-adjudication restitution program is operated by the Center for Community Justice - a private agency. Data were collected on the participating offenders from July, 1989 to June, 1990 (fiscal year of the Center); then, they were followed through the end of June, 1992 (2 year follow-up) for recidivism reports. In this study, the 'impact' of the VORP was measured in terms of offender compliance with restitution contracts and offender recidivism.