Criminal Justice - Restorative Justice Concentration

Dr. Carolyn Boyes-Watson, author of Peacemaking Circles and Urban Youth - Bringing Justice Home, defines restorative justice as “a broad term which encompasses a growing social movement to institutionalize peaceful approaches to harm, problem-solving and violations of legal and human rights.”   She adds that examples of restorative justice range from “international peacemaking tribunals such as the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of South Africa to innovations within our criminal justice system, schools, social services and communities.” 

In the book, Changing Lenses, Howard Zehr states that restorative justice asks the questions, “Who has been hurt? What are their needs? Whose obligations are these? What are the causes? Who has a stake in the situation?” And finally, “What is the appropriate process to involve stakeholders in an effort to address causes and put things right?”  This is unlike traditional criminal justice methods where questions typically revolve around what laws were broken, who did it and what punishment do they deserve.  

In restorative justice, collaborative, community-based or community-oriented techniques are used as a way to respond to crimes and offenses.  The approach relies less on traditional judicial processing and more on the victim, community and offender-centered practices that hold offenders accountable for their actions.  The process helps to ensure the consequences of harms and offenses meet the specific needs and desires of victims and community members, while improving offender competencies so as to prevent future harmful behavior on the offender's part.

At Governors State, we offer a Restorative and Community Justice Concentration in our B.A. in Criminal Justice program as well as a five-course Restorative Justice Certificate.  In the program, students study the historical, global and cultural influences on contemporary restorative justice programs and practices.  In addition students take part in practice-oriented workshops to acquire hands-on practice and skill development in restorative justice techniques.  Please see our website for the program’s requirements and information.   

Source:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Restorative_justice

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