- Filter
- Showing 10 posts filed under: Country:USA [–] [Show all]
Justice program rooted in community, not courts
from Andrea J. Cook's article in the Rapid City Journal:
When the South Dakota Supreme Court decided that the court system should take a restorative approach to dealing with crime, it expanded the system's approach from one that focused solely on the offender to one that considered consequences for victims, Horner said.
Until victim's rights legislation was on the books, victims were often pushed into the background.
Since [the Center for Restorative Justice's] creation, the main goal has been to keep the center community-based, rooted with the community and not the court system, Horner said.
"We've worked hard to keep it separate but connected to the court system," Horner said.
Apr 14, 2011 Limitations, Support, Practice, Region: North America and Caribbean, Country:USA
Seeking ‘peace on this earth’: Detailing the need for Alabama to offer a formal state apology
from Ben Greenberg's article in The Anniston Star:
Two local governments in southeast Alabama are expected to issue an apology for a 1944 rape of [Recy Taylor] a black woman by several white men, none of whom were ever prosecuted.
....Asked if the apology would also be on behalf of the state, Grimsley said, “We haven’t addressed that level yet.”
....“Clearly there should be an apology from the state here as well as the county,” said Professor Margaret Burnham, director of the Civil Rights and Restorative Justice Program at Northeastern University School of Law. “Each failed to pursue the investigation aggressively and promptly, and more generally afforded utter impunity to white men who raped black women. Such a statement would not only honor Recy Taylor and her family for their courage and tenacity in seeking justice, but it would speak to scores of victims who similarly suffered in silence.”
Mar 29, 2011 Apology, Offender, Case:Hate Crime, Region: North America and Caribbean, Case:Sexual, Country:USA
Volunteer hopes McKnight award will bring attention to Somali issues
from Madeleine Baran's report on Minnesota Public Radio:
"You have to understand that these are youth who have probably never seen Somalia ... and were born in a refugee camp," Ali, 40, said. "So the best they saw is a hardened kind of life, survival of the fittest. The prime time of their life has been lost, when they could be held, be loved, and play and eat."
In response to the study's findings, Ali founded the Center for Multicultural Mediation and Restorative Justice Program. The Minneapolis-based organization holds restorative justice sessions with Somali youth who have been arrested for shoplifting and other offenses. Each session also includes the parents and a community member.
"The (community member) will say, 'It's not good for us. You're doing harm to the Somali community, to your family, to everybody in the neighborhood,'" Ali said.
Mar 24, 2011 Process, Community, Region: North America and Caribbean, Case:Poverty, Country:USA
California's victims restitution fund running on empty
from the article by Jim Miller in The Press-Enterprise:
California's fund to help victims of crime is teetering on insolvency, with state officials this week scheduled to consider several cost-cutting moves to keep the account from going broke by next year.
The state restitution fund is the payer of last resort for crime victims and the oldest such program in the country. It has covered more than $2 billion worth of doctor's bills, burial costs and other expenses from hundreds of thousands of claims since it began in 1965.
....Victims advocates point to other causes for the fund's troubles: money taken by other parts of state government.
Feb 21, 2011 Victim, Region: North America and Caribbean, Country:USA, Restitution
Smart on Crime: Recommendations for the Administration and Congress
from the Executive Summary by Adrienne Benson:
Embodied in Smart on Crime are five basic principles the Coalition considers foundational, which Congress, the Administration and the judiciary should always consider when contemplating improvement to the criminal justice system. These principles include:
Feb 16, 2011 Policy, Politics, Region: North America and Caribbean, Country:USA
Interview with Debbie, a rape victim of Robert Power
from the interview by Ines Aubert:
Ines Aubert was a pen pal of Robert Powers who had been sentenced to death for the rape and murder of a 12-year-old girl. She discovered over time that Robert had changed profoundly and that he wanted, among other things, to extend an apology to any of his victims who wished to receive that.
This took on some urgency at the end of 2010 as Robert neared the end of his life (he died of cancer on December 3). Ines contacted restorative justice consultant and RJOnline Correspondent Lisa Rea for assistance, but they were unable to find a way to reach out to Robert's victims. Lisa wrote about this in an earlier blog entry on RJOB.
Commenting on an article about Robert's death in a Florida newspaper, Ines wrote that he had wanted to apologize before his death but had been unable. Another reader -- one of Robert's victims -- replied to Ines that she had forgiven Robert. The two were able to connect, and Ines recently interviewed Debbie about her experience as a victim and the reasons for her forgiveness. The following is a short excerpt of an answer Debbie gave to Ines' question about how she felt when she learned that Robert had a pen pal.
Feb 11, 2011 Apology, Offender, Prison, Other, Case:Violence, Victim, Case:Sexual, Forgiveness, Country:USA
Reintroduction of the Restorative Justice in Schools Act
from Tom Cavanagh's blog:
Become an supporter of the Restorative Justice in Schools Act. Below is the letter Congressman Steve Cohen sent to his colleagues asking for support for the bill.
Dear Colleague,
We encourage you to cosponsor legislation that promotes providing school personnel (teachers and counselors) with essential training that has the potential to reduce youth incarceration.
Jan 26, 2011 School, Government, Legislation, Region: North America and Caribbean, Policy, Country:USA
The Virginia Center for Restorative Justice
from Sylvia Clute's post in Genuine Justice:
How does a community establish a restorative justice program? It happens at the local level when committed individuals decide to make it happen. Take the Virginia Center for Restorative Justice (VCRJ), for example, a nonprofit established late last year in Richmond, Virginia.
VCRJ was founded by its Executive Director, Judy Clarke, a woman whose commitment to restorative justice is grounded in her abiding faith in God and in the fundamental goodness of humanity. But this journey began for Judy many years ago when she visited the Richmond City Jail for a day with a group of business leaders who were charged with finding a solution to the jail’s problems.
Jan 19, 2011 Story, Support, Practice, Region: North America and Caribbean, Country:USA
[More sensible ideas from the US!] Prison reform: A smart way for states to save money and lives
from the Washington Post OpEd by Newt Gingrich and Pat Nolan:
With nearly all 50 states facing budget deficits, it's time to end business as usual in state capitols and for legislators to think and act with courage and creativity.
We urge conservative legislators to lead the way in addressing an issue often considered off-limits to reform: prisons. Several states have recently shown that they can save on costs without compromising public safety by intelligently reducing their prison populations.
Jan 13, 2011 Support, Region: North America and Caribbean, Policy, Politics, Country:USA
Governor Jerry Brown: Can he support restorative justice?
by Lisa Rea
Jerry Brown has returned to California Governor's office in 2011 having first been elected the youngest governor in the state in 1975. What's changed?
The incarceration rate has skyrocketed. In 1986 the state prison population was at 59,000. Now the state incarcerates 173, 000 inmates in its state prisons (Legislative Analyst Office, 2006). Although editorial writer Dan Morain of the Sacramento BEE speaks of Brown's close ties to the California Correctional Peace Officers Association (CCPOA, the prison guard union with more members than most unions in the state) I believe Brown will not be tied to the failed policies of the past. I expect something more.
Jan 12, 2011 Support, Region: North America and Caribbean, Policy, Politics, Country:USA
