Restorative Justice is generally defined as an approach to criminal offenses that shifts the focus away from the punitive toward the effect of the criminal behavior on the victims, offenders and their communities. A key to restorative justice is the notion that the offender has a direct personal responsibility to those harmed, and that the responsibility is understood and expressed in the course of the process. Through dialogue, the offender comes to acknowledge the consequences of his actions. The term “restorative justice” encompasses programs along a broad gamut—from the victim and offender engaging in a dialogue regarding a violent incident to community accountability board meetings that may address issues that affect a greater number of people, such as vandalism of a public space.
There are many goals in the restorative justice movement for individuals who choose to partake of any of the range of programs or dialogues. First and foremost, the movement is founded on human connection. That is, victims actually have an opportunity to address the perpetrator directly regarding the incident between them. This creates not only an understanding of the other’s perspective, but also a process by which the victim may come to understand ways in which his behavior may have made him vulnerable to becoming a crime victim. From the offender’s perspective, there is the prospect of truly understanding the human effects of his actions.
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