RESTORATIVE JUSTICE 101

Names of Presenter(s)LocationDate

Notes on arranging the room; necessary equipment and hand-outs; welcoming participants; introducing oneself and CMN.

Help us, O Lord

Opening ReflectionsHear us, O God

Photo by Scott LangleyOpening: Let us silence our minds and open our hearts to praise God for this time we have been given to work together for the end of the use of the death penalty and to promote restorative justice in our land.Please respond, Hear us, O God.Leader: O God, you delight in clemency and tread underfoot our guilt. Hear us, as we pray with Pope John Paul II that The dignity of human life [may] never be taken away, even in the case of someone who has done great evil. Hear us, O God.Together with Pope Benedict, let us pray that Societys leaders will make every effort to eliminate the death penalty and to reform the penal system in a way that ensures respect for the prisoners human dignity. Hear us, O God.

Please respond: Help us, O Lord.Leader: We pray for politicians to bring about policies and programs to re-educate offenders, for the sake of their dignity and to help them reintegrate into society. Help us, O Lord.We pray to understand that prisoners rehabilitation is a need of society, who will regain persons contributing to the common good. Help us, O Lord.We pray for pastoral workers, who promote restorative justice that brings compassion and healing to victims of crime and their loved ones, as well as to offenders and their families. Help us, O Lord. Let us pray that our respect for all life will include the lives of those who fail to show respect for others. Help us, O Lord.

Videos of Restorative Justice

Brazilian Inmates Cycle to Freedom

Kate and Andy Grosmaire

Bridges to Life

Restorative Justice for Oakland YouthSelect one of the images to view the videos ahead of time and see which one may work best for your group. Note that you need an Internet connection to view these videos and will need one at the time of the presentation to show it as well.

After the video, explain that it helps set the stage for the rest of the workshop, in which they will learn what restorative justice means, examples of restorative justice in practice, and more about the current retributive criminal justice system.

What is Restorative Justice?Ask the audience what they think it means and what words come to mind. Remember: some people may have never heard the term.

Restorative Justice repairs the harm caused when a crime is committed.

It is a community-centered approach to justice which views crime as a violation of people and relationships, rather than simply a violation of law.

Restorative Justice focuses on the victims needs and the offenders responsibility to repair harm and foster healing.

Go slowly through this definition, one line at a time. It is CMNs working definition, a way of explaining the concept of RJ without describing how it is actually practiced. We want participants to understand the theory behind it before we dive into examples of RJ in action.

Restorative Justice in ActionIn Pursuit of Paradigm: A Theory of Restorative Justice, by Ted Wachtel, President, International Institute for Restorative Practices, & Paul McCold, Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice, Old Dominion University.

Your audience members will want to know how restorative justice works. This diagram gives a broad overview of practices that fall under the umbrella of restorative justice. Ensure your audience grasps that all of the practices listed in the diagram fall under the large umbrella of restorative justice. However, as you can see in the center of the diagram, fully restorative practices integrate the victim, the offender, and the community. This diagram was created by Ted Wachtel, President, International Institute for Restorative Practices, and Paul McCold, Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice, Old Dominion University (see References).

See Workshop Supplement #1: Restorative Justice in Action for more information on each restorative justice practice listed in the diagram. Review a few examples with your audience, drawing from different areas of the diagram.

The difference between Criminal Justice and Restorative Justice:Criminal Justice Crime is a violation of the law and the state Violations create guilt Justice requires the state to determine blame (guilt) and impose pain (punishment)

Central focus:offenders getting what they "deserve"

Restorative Justice Crime is a violation of people and relationships Violations create obligations Justice involves victims, offenders and community members in an effort to put things right

Central focus:victim needs and offender responsibility for repairing harm

From http://www.victimsvoicesheard.org/restorative-justice.html Go line by line on this slide, contrasting each characteristic of criminal justice with the corresponding characteristics of restorative justice.

Brief History of Criminal Justice in the U.S.

Late 1700s to the 20th Century (pp. 3-15) * 1700s: violent crime was rare 1800s: first prisons designed to punish overcrowding, disease, violence 1900s: brutality continued with emphasis on retribution and deterrence New penology movement 1960s to 1980s (pp. 18-25) * 1960s-70s: soaring crime rates among baby boomers Lyndon B. Johnsons war on crime Increased violence and riots in prisons penology reverted to retribution Mandatory prison sentences*Summarized from Kirk Blackard, Love in a Caldron of Misery: Perspectives on Christian Prison Ministry, IPF & Stock, Eugene, OR: 2012, Part IPrisons. 1980s to 2000s (pp. 26-37) * 1984: birth of private prison industry 1995: nearly all new prisons were privately owned 2006: cost of penal system totaled $70 billionThis slide marks a shift in the workshop from discussing restorative justice to understanding what our actual justice system is. Here is a very brief overview of criminal justice in the U.S., summarized from a book by Kirk Blackard. The purpose of the slide is to get audience members thinking about the roots of criminal justice in our nation and to have a very elementary understanding of how crime and punishment has shifted in the last 200+ years. Here are some additional notes to supplement the overview:

Characteristics of new penology movement included moving away from isolation to allow family visits; developing systems of probation and parole; and abolishing convict leasing in many states.

LBJs war one crime produced tough on crime movement, mandatory sentencing, and the prison-industrial complex.

When discussing increased violence and riots in prison, place in the context of the civil rights movement, race riots, political assassinations.

When discussing mandatory prison sentences, give example of 15 years to life for selling 2 oz. of an illegal drug. These mandatory sentences have led to massive increases in prison population.

Statistics Tell the Story of Criminal Justice TodayThe U.S. is the worlds leader in incarceration with 2.2 million people currently in the nations prisons or jails a 500% increase over the past 30 years. Ryan S. King et al, The Sentencing Project, Washington, DC: 20005: www.sentencingproject.org, p. 1.The more people behind bars, and the longer they stay there, the more money that private, for-profit prison companies make. Cf. The Public Campaign (http://www.publicampaign.org/) and the Center for Responsive Politics (http://centerforresponsivepolitics.net/).

1925 1984 2010The next two slides contrast what we just learned about restorative justice to what is actually happening in our criminal justice system today. They are meant to simply get the audience thinking about criminal justice in the U.S. and to consider whether our system promotes healing and restoration.

Another interesting fact regarding the for-profit prison industry:Over the last decade, the two largest for-profit prison companies...saw their annual revenue double as a result of the spike in incarcerations. Since 2001, CCA (Corrections Corporation of America), GEO Group, and Cornell Companies have spent over $22 million lobbying Congress. Since 2003, CCA has employed 204 lobbyists in 32 states. -- http://publicampaign.org/reports/unholyalliance

At the federal level, prisoners incarcerated on a drug charge comprise half of the prison population, while the number of drug offenders in state prisons has increased thirteen-fold since 1980. The Sentencing Project, A 25-Year Quagmire: The War on Drugs and Its Impact on American Society, 2007: http://www.sentencingproject.org/doc/publications/dp_25yearquagmire.pdfDuring 2011 Blacks and Hispanics were imprisoned at higher rates than whites in all age groups for both male and female inmates. Among prisoners ages 18 to 19, black males were imprisoned at more than 9 times the rate of white males. - U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, Prisoners in 2011, 2012: http://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/p11.pdf3.6% of all children, more than 2.7 million, have a parent in a US prison. Children of prisoners are likely to be imprisoned themselves. Pew Charitable Trusts, Collateral Costs of Incarceration, 2010: http://www.pewtrusts.org/Statistics Tell the Story of Criminal Justice Today

A Catholic PerspectivePastoral workers have the task of studying and recommending restorative justice as a means and a process for promoting reconciliation, justice, and peace, and the return of victims and offenders to the community. Benedict XVI, Benin to Community of SantEgidio, November 19, 2011Genesis 4: 1-15 Cain kills Abel, yet God does not kill Cain. Rather, God sends him away with a mark so that others also would not kill him. Gods punishment of Cain is exile, not vengeance.

Pope John Paul II meets with Mehmet Ali Aca A sign of hope is the increasing recognition that the dignity of human life must never be taken away, even in the case of someone who has done great evil. Modern society has the means of protecting itself, without definitively denying criminals the chance to reform. John Paul II, St. Louis, MO, January 27, 1999

To explain picture: Pope John Paul II meets face-to-face with Mehmet Ali Agca, the man who shot and wounded him in 1981. The pope publicaly forgave Mehmet and asked people to pray for him, becoming a living example of restorative justice in action. He also met with Mehmets mother and brother.

A Catholic PerspectiveWe believe that both victims and the offenders are children of God. Despite their very different claims on society, their lives and dignity should be respected. We seek justice, not vengeance. We believe punishment must have clear purposes: protecting society and rehabilitating those who violate the law. U.S. Bishops in Responsibility, Rehabilitation, and Restoration: A Catholic Perspective on Crime and Criminal Justice, USCCB: Washington, DC, 2000, p. 16.John 8 Let anyone among you who is without sin the be the first to throw a stone at her.Matthew 18 Which of these three, do you think was a neighbor to the man...? He said, The one who showed him mercy. Jesus said to him, Go and do likewise.

The picture here is the cover of Responsibility, Rehabilitation, and Restoration, a publication of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops. The bishops strongly promote restorative justice based on Scripture and Catholic values.

To read the text of this document, visit: http://www.usccb.org/issues-and-action/human-life-and-dignity/criminal-justice-restorative-justice/crime-and-criminal-justice.cfm

What You Can Do: Learn MoreRecommended Reading:

Love in a Cauldron of Misery: Perspectives on Christian Prison Ministry by Kirk Blackard. Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock, 2012.

The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander. New York: New Press, 2012.

The Little Book of Restorative Justice by Howard Zehr. Intercourse, PA: Good Books, 2002.

The Little Book of Circle Processes by Kay Pranis. Intercourse, PA: Good Books, 2005. http://www.iwanttoserve.org/http://www.restorativejustice.org/ Hopefully, by this point in the workshop, your audience will want to know how they can learn more about restorative justice. Here are a few of our book recommendations. Restorative Justice Online is a database full of stories, research, public policy updates you name it! Its a true clearinghouse on restorative justice.

What You Can Do: Join the ConversationKeep in touch!

Visit our website at:

catholicsmobilizing.org

for resources, prayers, curricula, news, and more

Encourage your audience to visit CMNs website and to keep in touch with us via social media. The next slide is a screenshot of our website.

This is a screen shot of our website. Point out the Join Us box on the right where audience members can sign up for our monthly (just once a month, we promise!) newsletter. Also, let them know that nearly everything on the website is free and downloadable.

O God, your love is unconditional and not based on performance. It is patient, kind, forgiving, and unchanging, even when we behave unacceptably. Real love must give and serve Agape. Help us respond to this higher calling by serving one another despite conflicts or bad behavior and remain open to the hope of peaceful co-existence.

O God, the great German poet, Rainer Maria Rilke, said it best: I want to unfold. Let no place in me hold itself closed. For where I am closed I am false. I want to stay clear in your sight.

Amen.

--Adapted from an essay by Marcus Wellons, co-editor, Compassion Newsletter, Georgia Death Row, Jackson, GA. January 2013 Issue: www.Compassionondeathrow.net

Closing ReflectionsSee Workshop Supplement #2: Closing Reflections for half sheets of paper with larger text. Give each audience member a half sheet before the reflection time begins.

Begin this closing prayer with the following quote from Pope Benedict XVI:

[] violence in all its forms, whether crime or terrorism, is always unacceptable, because it profoundly wounds human dignity and is an offence against the whole of humanity. The struggle against violence must aim to stem crime and defend society, but it must also aim at the reform and the correction of the criminal, who remains always a human person, a subject of inalienable rights, and as such is not to be excluded from society, but rather rehabilitated.

Then invite audience members to join in, reading from the words on the slide/half sheets of paper together.