Restorative Programs & Community/State Collaboration

How does a restorative justice program balance diverse community and state resources to achieve even greater impact? Is it even possible to create a right or optimal mix of resources given these stakeholders' often misaligned roles?

Ted Lewis, Executive Director of the Barron County Restorative Justice Programs (BCRJP) in Northwest Wisconsin, thinks there is an ideal collaborative structure in which community and state actors  can engage to propel RJ programs toward greater integration and impact. His recent article, published in the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention's inaugural issue of the Journal of Juvenile Justice, reviews his experiences with BCRJP and its connection with various state collaborators. Detailing BCRJP's partnerships with municipal courts, police departments, schools, Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Corrections, and numerous nonprofits, Ted takes a conceptual step back to consider how this 'interdependent' nonprofit balances community and stated interests for victim and offender benefit.

"A Partnership for Balancing Community and Government Resources for Juvenile Justice Services" is a quick, informative read full of intriguing info and ideas. The article outlines BCRJP's extensive service portfolio, core program statistics, and benefits, including lower rates of recidivism, reduced higher-level interventions, reintegration of youth offenders in the community, and a tangible cost savings to the county  of $378-$392 per offender. 

The complete rundown of services and statistics are being discussed on the Restorative Practices Discussion Group, an online listserve co-hosted by NAFCM and VOMA. We encourage all our restorative colleagues to join us in this free group to discuss this and other RJ research, hot button issues, and field updates. We look forward to welcoming you into the restorative conversation!

In community,

Justin R. Corbett

Executive Director, NAFCM

Victim-Offender Dialogue for Serious Violence: A Case Study

Victim-Offender Dialogue (VOD) maintains a rich history and continues to be a substantial area of growth within the restorative justice field. This practice, informed by historic wisdom, refined by reflective practitioners, and supported by a growing cannon of research, facilitates unimaginably difficult conversations in the pursuits of restoration, understanding, and growth for all involved. It is a practice undertaken by some of our field's most skilled and empathic colleagues.

On the leading edge of this field are those applying victim-offender dialogue for crimes of serious violence (VOD-SV), including rape, incest, spousal abuse, and homicide. Now, thanks to the generosity of some of these practitioners, we can glimpse into this emotion- and tension-filled practice by way of a recent Conflict Resolution Quarterly article. 

Co-authored by Lynn S. Urban, Jeananne Markway, and Kay Crockett, "Evaluating Victim-Offender Dialogue for Serious Cases Using Umbreit's 2001 Handbook: A Case Study," is a wonderfully reflective piece glimpsing into the VOD-SV room and recommending opportunities for continued field growth.

Drawing on their article, the characteristics, benefits, and stages of VOD-SVs are outlined below. More substantive sections revealing the Missouri Department of Correction's VOD-SV program statistics, the authors' field recommendations, and identified best practices are now being shared within the Restorative Practices discussion group -- a listserve co-hosted by NAFCM and VOMA. I encourage you to join this group to learn about VOD-SV and other restorative practices, connect with colleagues, and share resources. Participation in this discussion group is open to all those interested in restorative justice theory and practice.

Characteristics of VOD-SV:

• Victim-initiated;
• Usually occur several years after the crime;
• Usually occur within a correctional facility; and 
• Involve high levels of emotion and tension.

Benefits of VOD-SV:

• High process satisfaction from victims and offenders;
• Opportunities for apology and forgiveness;
• Victims’ safety concerns related to offenders’ release are reduced;
• Less victim opposition to offenders’ release; and
• Offenders are better prepared to re-enter the community. 

Stages of VOD-SV:

• Case Development (assessment, contracting, and preparation);
• Victim-Offender Dialogue (pre-dialogue briefing, victim-offender dialogue, and post-dialogue briefing); and
• Follow-up.

Be part of the deeper VOD-SV and general restorative justice conversations. Join the Restorative Practices discussion group today!

In community,

Justin R. Corbett

Executive Director, NAFCM

Research on Victim Offender Mediators

NAFCM is pleased to promote a new research project evaluating victim offender mediators' perspectives on justice. Entitled "Justice Attitudes and Motivations of Victim-Offender Mediation Facilitators," this project, undertaken by Assistant Professor Greg Paul, Ph.D. from the Department of Communication & Theater at Millersville University, will compare mediators' concepts of justice with those held by the general public.

Professor Paul is seeking victim offender mediators to participate in a short online survey to further this research. 

After his research concludes, Professor Paul has graciously agreed to share his findings with NAFCM for distribution to interested community mediation/VOM/VORP programs. 

Read Professor Paul's short description of the project:

Victim-offender mediation programs invest significant resources in training volunteers to effectively manage victim-offender meetings. Are those trainings effective? Why do people volunteer to become mediators in the first place? The purpose of this research project is to explore how facilitators’ justice attitudes compare with those of the public at large, as well as to understand why facilitators volunteer for victim-offender mediation programs. 

This confidential online survey is open to all volunteer facilitators of victim-offender mediation/reconciliation programs. In return for participation, a $2 donation will be made to the participant’s VOM / VORP organization for the first 200 participants who complete the questionnaire. Additionally, every VOM organization whose volunteers complete the survey will receive general and organization-specific summaries of responses. 

If you have any questions, please email Dr. Greg Paul. To participate, please forward the following link to your volunteer facilitators: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/283C5WL

Thank you for supporting important community mediation research!

In community,

Justin R. Corbett

Executive Director, NAFCM

Restoring the Restorative Justice Conversation

Re-Enlivening & Restoring

the 

Restorative Justice Conversation!

Today we are pleased to announce a collaborative partnership with VOMA: the Victim Offender Mediation Association, to reinvigorate the rich conversations within the restorative justice community.

NAFCM and VOMA are now co-hosting the new Restorative Practices Discussion Group.  This new group is designed to connect like-minded practitioners, share resources, aggregate collected wisdom, and advance the restorative justice conversation.  We encourage those working in restorative-focused programs to explore this interactive discussion group (listserve) and lend their voices to the collegial and collaborative conversations it will now house.

VOMA's extensive history supporting restorative practitioners and programs both in the U.S. and abroad has uniquely qualified them to co-host this substantive, wide-ranging discussion group. By specializing in victim-offender mediations, conferencing, circles, and related restorative justice processes, VOMA's institutional and field knowledge will serve to elevate the Restorative Practices Discussion Group into a leading forum for professionals the world round.

Further strengthening the foundations of this new group has been the energetic participation of VOMA's Board and administrative representatives: Barbara Raye, Duane Ruth-Heffelbower, and Sheryl Wilson, each of whom supremely represent the ideals and professional dedication of VOMA and the broader restorative justice field.  Sheryl has graciously agreed to share of her wisdom and time by serving as VOMA's official representative, inspiring and moderating, along with NAFCM, the exciting conversation housed in this new discussion group.

We are excited to be working so closely with VOMA on this new resource.  NAFCM and VOMA's respective programs work side-by-side, our members are often one-and-the-same, our philosophical and practical objectives are closely aligned, and our passions to help those in conflict are beautifully in sync.  Beginning today, through the Restorative Practices Discussion Group, we now also share a common platform to convene and support restorative programs and practitioners. 

We invite you to learn more about this new group, as well as NAFCM's many other topical and geographic-focused listserves.  Take a moment to learn how to join the community's newest conversation and begin reconnecting and restoring our important voice!

In community,

Justin R. Corbett

Executive Director, NAFCM