2006 Annual Report
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Note: As of January 2006, the Capital Community Justice Center (CCJC) has changed its name to the Montpelier Community Justice Center (MCJC).
Montpelier Community Justice Center
Annual Report 2006
This document is also available as a PDF: MCJC 2006 Annual Report, 3 pages, 50 KB,
Annual Report 2006
This document is also available as a PDF: MCJC 2006 Annual Report, 3 pages, 50 KB,
The Montpelier Community Justice Center (MCJC) is now in its fourth year of operation. To quote a recent email we received, (It) is beginning to reach its full potential and we are seeing the results in the community. In our quest to promote and provide restorative responses to conflict and crime in our community, we offer a variety of services made possible by various grants, municipal support, and the generous giving of time by many good people.
Services provided by the Justice Center during the past year include:
Mediation of neighborhood disputes – MCJC staff has helped six groups of neighbors communicate and work out solutions to thorny problems that resulted from conflicting interests. Typical issues that result in complaints to the police or City officials include noise, encroachment, hostility, dogs, etc. Whether the case is self-referred or comes to us from the police or others, mediation brings parties together and structures communication so that people talk more productively and figure out for themselves the adjustments needed to become more harmonious neighbors.
I rolled with the punches and hung in there . . . through the rough parts . . . and various solutions were explored, discarded, or refined . . . It did not cost me anything except time and I believe it was time well spent.
Conflict management services to area schools – MCJC staff worked with administrators at several schools towards developing healthier school climates. The MCJC has provided ongoing direct technical assistance for a core group of students at Montpelier High School interested in starting a Student Restorative Panel. The MCJC facilitated a restorative conference at another area school for 20 people, including students, parents, and staff, in response to a serious multi-student conflict, resulting in renewed friendship and a resolve among the students to maintain peaceful relations.
The best thing . . . was getting to meet all the girls, their parents and supporters and hearing everyone’s perspective on the events. . . the outcome was well worth the time.
Conflict management resources for community issues – MCJC staff and volunteers designed and facilitated a forum to educate the public and invite public input as the Planning Commission neared completion of the Proposed Zoning and Map Amendments for Montpelier. MCJC staff further assisted the Planning Commission and City Council in discussing their respective interests related to the Zoning Amendments.
The MCJC was asked to help manage the conversation between the Family Center of Washington County and the residents of the Sherwood Drive neighborhood after the Family Center applied to the Development Review Board for approval to operate on a property in that neighborhood. Staff and volunteers acted as intermediaries and facilitated a number of meetings over several months. The MCJC also assisted the City’s Planning Department by conducting public education about the application process.
I believe the MCJC provided a valuable public service that helped engage citizens in the planning and regulatory process.
Community based restorative response to crime – The MCJC has been operating two Reparative Boards and is launching a third in January, 2007. Each Board is made up of four to six trained volunteers who meet with people who have been sentenced by the court for crimes such as DUI, retail theft, and fraud. The Board asks a person who offended to look at what happened in terms of the harm done to individuals and the community and asks the person to help devise a plan of activities aimed at deepening the understanding of the harm, making amends, and not repeating the offensive behavior. A written Reparative Agreement is generated and the person returns in 90 days to demonstrate completion. People affected by the offense are always invited to participate in the process at whatever level of comfort they choose, which can range from having no participation to submitting a written statement to direct participation at the meeting. Many people make amends by performing volunteer work in the community and a recent study has confirmed what previous studies have shown – that the reparative probation program “significantly reduces the likelihood of subsequent criminal offending compared to more traditional standard probations practices.”
It felt good to accept the woman’s apology.
In a non-Reparative court ordered case, the MCJC assisted two victims to negotiate a restitution order with a person who had left the scene of an automobile accident. This negotiation took place in lieu of a court hearing.
A ‘human’ face was placed on participants. Everyone involved got to ask questions and speak freely – not as in a courtroom.
Five cases were referred to our youth pre-charge program, a program aimed at keeping young people out of the criminal justice system by responding to wrongdoing with a restorative approach.
The MCJC directs a Restorative Reentry Program designed to increase community safety as people transition from prison to supervised life in the community. Citizen volunteers serve on Circles of Support and Accountability (COSAs) with people reentering the community following incarceration for a serious and violent offense. With the intent of decreasing the likelihood of new victims, COSA volunteers form a relationship with the reentry participant to help him or her make the choices necessary to become self-sufficient, law-abiding citizens.
Your program gives us a serious shot at success by providing support, resources and training to volunteers and offenders.
Education and training – The MCJC co-sponsored the screening of the film A Meeting With A Killer at the Barre Opera House. This documentary presented the story of how a mother and daughter of a woman who was murdered ultimately met with the man who killed their loved one, and how this meeting furthered their healing.
The MCJC continuously recruits and trains new volunteers for its reparative and restorative reentry programs. We offer workshops on a continuing and rotating basis on restorative justice, the experience of victims and offenders in the criminal justice system, the Reparative Board process, the operation of Circles of Support and Accountability, domestic violence, substance abuse, and honoring the victim in a restorative process.
It feels almost too good to be true to have found this restorative justice program. I want to do the training. . .
The MCJC Citizen Advisory Board raffled a kayak to support the MCJC’s work with young people and in doing so had many opportunities to talk with community members about restorative justice. The curiosity, interest, and positive feedback confirmed our conviction that it is good to have a resource to help people communicate and create their own solutions to conflict, and that our community wants a system that requires people who have offended to look at and understand the effects of their offense while taking responsibility for making amends and not re-offending.
The rest of the story:
The MCJC currently has a staff of three – Yvonne Byrd, Executive Director; Karen Blazer, Programs Coordinator; and Judy Gibson, Caseworker. However, our volunteers are key to our ability to deliver so many of our services. Volunteers contribute in a myriad of ways. Some offer regular service on a Citizen Advisory Board, a Reentry Advisory Panel, Reparative Boards, and Circles of Support and Accountability while others have helped on an occasional or ongoing basis with special projects. We have also benefited from the pro bono work of professional mediators and facilitators in certain cases.
Active volunteers and community partners who generously gave of their time and talents during 2006 include Danielle Abrams, Kit Andrews, Vanessa Astacio, Marina Back, Lori Baker, Rain Banbury, June Bascom, Ariel Borgendale, Sarah Blakely, Betty Blouin, Tovar Cerulli, Judy Chalmer, Art Chickering, Jo Chickering, Paul Coates, Sheila Coniff, Cindy Cook, Jane Edwards, Tony Facos, Barbara Floersch, Allie Frances, Laura Gabriel, Bobbi Gagne, Judy Gibson, Paul Goldstein, John Gorczyk, Gisa Green, Eva Gumprecht, Beverly Hill, Andy Hooper, Mary Hooper, Doug Hoyt, Dick Jenney, Renee Kievit-Kylar, Rachel Lawler, Evan Meenan, Alfred Mills, Kathleen Moore, Alaya Morning, Joanne Pereira, Kim Raine, Steve Reynes, Britt Richarson, Dee Rollins, Tina Ruth, Jim Sheridan, Franklin Shiner, Glenn Sturgis, Shellie Swan, Mike Sweeney, Dan Towner, Connie Weems, Jody Whitaker, and Elizabeth Wigren.
Why we are all here is that we volunteers feel the great truth about life is that we are in this life together.
We hold a vision for the future of the MCJC that includes continuing the programs we have while creating a restorative community service program that enhances the value of community service performed as a part of making amends. However, our main goal is to be responsive to the priorities of our community in delivering our services and we welcome suggestions, questions, feedback, and volunteers. We are located in City Hall and can be reached at 223-9606, or by email at mcjc@montpelier-vt.org.
Yvonne Byrd, Executive Director
Karen Blazer, Reparative and Justice F.Y.I. Programs Coordinator
Dee Rollins, Reentry Program Coordinator
Karen Blazer, Reparative and Justice F.Y.I. Programs Coordinator
Dee Rollins, Reentry Program Coordinator
Contacts
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Montpelier Community
Justice Center
39 Main Street, City Hall, Suite 6
Montpelier, VT 05601-0533
(802) 223-9606
E-mail: mcjc@montpelier-vt.org
Yvonne Byrd, Executive Director
E-mail: ybyrd@montpelier-vt.org
Karen Blazer, Program Coordinator
E-mail: klblazer@montpelier-vt.org
Judy Gibson, Caseworker
Email: jgibson@montpelier-vt.org
Updated March 14, 2007
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