Restorative Justice Process - Essay Example

Restorative Justice Process Restorative justice basically approaches the realization of justice by focusing on the needs of various stakeholders, chiefly the offender(s), victim(s) and community members as opposed to punishing the offender(s) as is commonly the case with legal proceedings (Morris & Maxwell, 2001). The process focuses greatly on the personal needs of the offender and victim. This paper will analyze the process of restorative justice.The process of restorative justice as applied in the case of David, Ed, and Mildred encompasses several processes.

The process of restorative justice greatly depends on the defendants’ confessions and their needs as well as the desires of the victim. The restorative justice process in this case can be said to involve two main processes; victim-offender mediation and restorative circles.The process begins with mediation between the offender and the victim subject the wishes of both parties. The offender and the victim may meet in the presence of a qualified mediator if both wish to do so (Nelsen, 1996).

Otherwise, the offender may send a written apology to the victim. Once this is complete, a circle meeting is held with more participants included in the process. Some of those who participate at this level include the victim, the offender, their friends, family, and some professionals. During the circle meeting, which is voluntarily attended, consequences of the offender’s actions are discussed and restitution measures proposed and agreed on (restorativejustice.org, 2012). At this stage, members of the community are involved in discussing the effects that the crime has on their lives and what can be done to avoid future occurrences of similar crimes.

In the event that the offender denies responsibility, they are subjected to an adversarial court trial with the option of recalling the cooperative process that follows if they confess to the crime that they are accused of committing. Alternatively, when one is found guilty of an offence by the adversarial court, they are given a sentence which in part includes paying restitution.ReferencesMorris, A. & Maxwell, G. (2001). "Restorative conferencing", in Bazemore, G.; Schiff, M., Restorative community justice: Repairing harm and transforming communities, Cincinnati, OH: Anderson Publishing Co..Nelsen, J. (1996). Positive discipline (2nd Ed.). New York: Ballantine Books.

restorativejustice.org (2012). Restorative justice processes. Retrieved from http://www.restorativejustice.org/press-room/05rjprocesses Subject: Law, Essay   Topic:  Restorative Justice Process  Instructions: Style: APA Language Style:  English (U.S.) Grade:  n/a Pages: 1 Sources:  3 Review the RJ City case study at: http://www.rjcity.org/the-project/documents/Case%20Study%2030-10-09.pdf· Explain the restorative justice process.Wright 250 words explaining the restorative process.

Additional References:Schmalleger, F. (2011). Criminal justice today: An introductory text for the 21st century (11th Ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ. Pearson Education Inc. / Prentice Hall Schmalleger, F., Siegel, L. J., & Worrall, J. L. (2011). Courts and Criminal Justice in America. Upper Saddle River, NJ. Pearson Education Inc. / Prentice Hall