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- Dictionaryrestorative justice
noun
- 1. a system of criminal justice which focuses on the rehabilitation of offenders through reconciliation with victims and the community at large.
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restorative justice, response to criminal behaviour that focuses on lawbreaker restitution and the resolution of the issues arising from a crime in which victims, offenders, and the community are brought together to restore the harmony between the parties.
A popular definition given by Tony Marshall defines "restorative justice" as "a process whereby all parties with a stake in a specific offence come together to resolve collectively how to deal with the aftermath of the offence and its implications for the future" [1].
Restorative justice is both a set of practices and a broad philosophy with applicability across contexts. Restorative justice has several core philosophical features, including a focus on identifying needs and repairing harm, active accountability, centering relationships and community, and voluntary participation.
By repairing the harm to the relationships between offenders and victims, and offenders and the community that resulted from the crime, restorative justice seeks to understand and address the circumstances which contributed to the crime.
What is Restorative Justice? Restorative justice is a set of principles and practices that create a different approach to dealing with crime and its impacts. Restorative justice practices work to address the dehumanization frequently experienced by people in the traditional criminal justice system.
Restorative justice brings those harmed by crime or conflict and those responsible for the harm into communication, enabling everyone affected by a particular incident to play a part in repairing the harm and finding a positive way forward. This is part of a wider field called restorative practice.
Restorative justice is a theory of justice that focuses on the harm caused by crime and wrongdoing to people, relationships and community. It provides a framework for addressing and preventing harm that moves beyond punishment towards healing.
Restorative justice is a response to wrongdoing that prioritizes repairing harm and recognizes that maintaining positive relationships with others is a core human need. It seeks to address the root causes of crime, even to the point of transforming unjust systems and structures.
The three core elements of restorative justice are the interconnected concepts of Encounter, Repair, and Transform. Each element is discrete and essential. Together they represent a journey toward wellbeing and wholeness that victims, offenders, and community members can experience.
Restorative justice presents a “paradigm shift” away from existing forms of justice based on punitive measures such as incarceration and towards community-based measures that address harm for the individual(s) harmed, the individual(s) who did the harm, and the larger community.
