Comments on: vancouver’s shootings and restorative justice

By: Andrew

Andrew — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 12:06:39 +0000

Isabella,

Thanks for your clarification with respect to the issue about restorative justice not being a substitute for jail terms.

Certainly, I can see Lin’s point – criminal punishment is handed down for crimes against the state, and do little in the way of assisting victims with the healing process.

I cannot speak from personal experience in this regard, but I could certainly imagine that having the offender take whatever action is reasonable in order to make restitution to the victim would be a helpful and constructive step. And in cases such as violent crime or sexual assault, where the damage cannot be undone, then at least a genuine apology and acknowledgement of wrongdoing may prove to be of some (albeit inadequate) consolation to the victim.

Andrew’s last blog post..Thoughts for a nation in shock

By: lin

lin — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 06:20:19 +0000

It may be that Andrew is correct and violent crimes demand jail/prison time. And yet, the criminal justice system has so little to offer those who have already been hurt. The purpose, it seems, is punitive or isolation; those who have hurt others are being punished and kept out of the population to eliminate the potential for
re-offense against any one of us…at least for a time. Though it is true that when the fellow who hurt me was in prison, I was comforted that he could not find or hurt me again for a time, it felt safe but unsatisfying. A crime victim gets hurt, does his or her part for society — reporting, maybe participating in an investigation and offering testimony if necessary. But the crime is considered a crime against the state. There is little acknowledgement of the personal, even intimate nature of crime — a human hurting another human. I have an interest in restorative justice conceptually and wonder if maybe a framework could evolve in relation even to violent crimes. But I do not know if it could be beneficial for an offender and if it is not, then it would be just more punishment. I am certain, however, that it offers victims a greater opportunity for ‘justice’ than courts and prison can offer — through a direct acknowledgement of responsibility and some measure, maybe small but meaningful, of restitution or contribution to the cost of healing. I am trying to learn more about it; hope you keep addressing it here. Thanks.

By: Katharine

Katharine — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 04:59:11 +0000

Very interesting indeed. Knowing from prior blog posts that you are from the Vancouver area, I was actually wondering if the shootings would make their way into your blog! I am very concerned about the drug violence that has been increasing in various parts of Canada, Vancouver included, even though I live in New York. To solve this organized crime problem, I think we need to re-examine and re-vamp our drug policy (we being really a lot of the Western world, the US being the worst offender, even though, tragically, our drug policy failures impact other countries… just look at what’s going on in Mexico right now! But I think Canada certainly has progress to make as well! I’m a huge fan of Insite in Vancouver – I think that’s such a step in the right direction, and despite all the controversy surrounding it, it’s continued successful operation is an inspiration beyond Vancouver’s city limits!) Anyway, I think restorative justice is very much a part of this. It reminds me in some ways (not exactly) of CeaseFire programs that I believe have been tried in Cincinnati and other places in the US, even those those are prevention programs – not for dealing with crimes after the fact. I would have to learn more about the formal tenets of Restorative Justice before commenting in too much more detail, but it sounds very in line with my own personal philosophy regarding criminal justice and drug policy in general, where there is an emphasis on rehabilitation and much more attention paid to the data and science and facts of what works and what doesn’t as opposed to just revenge.

One thing though, I think it’s unfair to call, as your friend did, those involved in the recent shootings and gang violence outbreaks sociopaths. The vast majority of people involved in organized crime of this nature are confused, lost kids who come from tragic backgrounds. I’m sure you have sociopaths mixed in there, but the occurrence of that sort of pathology int he general population is extremely (extremely!!!!) rare, and not something that can be determined from afar. I strongly believe that regular humans can do horrible, horrible, horrrrrrible things, and still have goodness in them. That, and armchair psychoanalysis isn’t something I generally support.

But, all in all, thanks for writing about this important topic, thanks to your friend for being interested in and working so hard to support alternatives to the current criminal justice paradigm, and thank you for giving her a voice!

Katharine’s last blog post..“A sexual enthusiast, grandad Darwin wrote enormously long poems about the sexual parts of plants and…”

By: isabella mori

isabella mori — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 04:31:56 +0000

thanks for your comment, andrew!

the way i understand restorative justice, it does not necessarily avoid jail terms. for example, in the reena virk case, the offender in question certainly served a jail term.

By: Andrew

Andrew — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 23:25:46 +0000

Isabella,

Firstly, let me express my sympathy for the family of the victim in the shooting last Tuesday – a simply horrific event.

I certainly see the merit behind restorative justice, and in the example of graffiti, I would imagine that its application toward smaller crimes might even help in the prevention of more serious crimes.

That said, for more serious crimes, such as last week’s shooting, I don’t think jail terms can or should be avoided.

Andrew’s last blog post..Thoughts for a nation in shock