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Restorative interventions are safer than teen/youth court

Recently the Huffington Post posted a blog by Michael Shank Phd lamenting the termination of a teen court program in Washington DC. Two experienced restorative practitioners, Kris Miner, Marg Thorsborne and myself wrote the following comment voicing our concern with teen/youth court models: “Thank you [Dr. Shank] for pointing out the importance of juvenile diversion and the need to improve the unhelpful, and often damaging, juvenile justice system. While diversion should be provided by all…

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Restorative interventions needed for 97% cases where defendants plead guilt

Not Guilty: Are the Acquitted Innocent? is an excellent new book by Dan Givelber* Northeastern Law School professor, and Amy Farrell Northeastern Criminal Justice School professor. In this easy to read book, the authors provide valuable information and insights into how judges and juries behave, and how understanding acquittals better (acquittals occur once in every 100 cases) could improve our justice system. “The pervasive problem of crime fuels the belief that we do not prosecute…

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Lawyers promote restorative justice & therapeutic jurisprudence

While a lot of “lawyer dissing” goes on, some of it easily understandable, many lawyers and judges (who are also lawyers) should be recognized for promoting restorative justice and therapeutic jurisprudence. Judge Gordon McConnell was instrumental in the first modern restorative justice case. John Braithwaite, in Restorative Justice and Responsive Regulation, cites a paper by Peachy, D.E., 1989, “The Kitchener Experiment” In Mediation and Criminal Justice: Victims, Offenders and Community, edited by M. Wright and…

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Bringing court to prison in Brazil

While in Brazil learning how it applies restorative justice in its corrections system, I met the wonderful Judge Cristiana Cordeiro.  She is young, enthusiastic, and  more interested in protecting children than she is in status and her own comfort. Once a month Judge Cordeiro travels to a prison in Rio de Janeiro to conduct hearings for incarcerated women helping them place their children into secure and stable homes. “It was much easier for me to…

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Federal Measures Before Congress that Can Help Promote Restorative Justice

On Tuesday May 11, 2010 4:00 p.m. two measures will be heard by the U. S. House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security: H.R. 4080, the Criminal Justice Reinvestment Act of 2009; and H.R. 4055, the Honest Opportunity Probation with Enforcement (HOPE) Initiative Act of 2009. Reinvesting in crime and the HOPE programs could provide for restorative interventions. Judge Steven Alm a former U.S. Attorney for Hawai‘i, developed the HOPE program. While it…

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Randy Cohen’s Good Advice to Not Call the Police

Randy Cohen, The Ethicist, who writes an insightful and often humorous column for the New York Times Magazine, made a good case for using restorative justice recently.  He answered a question asked by a restaurant manager if he should call the police on a server who was caught stealing.  Mr. Cohen said no!  He pointed out the failings of our justice system in clear and undeniable terms.  The sever too had admitted guilt and offered…

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Restorative justice considers the merits of cases not just rules…

The disturbing case of Albert Holland whose lawyer failed to adequately represent him points out a growing problem with our traditional courts:  the focus on the law and rules vs. the facts and merits of particular cases in making rulings. Most American legal cases are being decided on procedure and law, “the rules,” and not on equity or the merits of cases. See Michael J. Sandel’s Democracy’s Discontent: America in Search of a Public Philosophy.…

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