Restorative Justice Panels

People referred to Restorative Justice Panels participate in a restorative process in which they are asked to

Admit wrong doing and talk about it
Learn about the effects of the crime on others
Work with others to design and carry out a plan for making amends and for making better choices in the future

Victims/survivors of a crime are invited to ask questions, let the person who offended know how the crime affected them and/or help create a plan for making amends. The choices available to the people affected by a crime include:

Attend a meeting and participate in the conversation
Give information in writing to be shared with the person who offended
Give information in writing to panel members only
Not participate at all

Who is Referred

People may be referred for a restorative response through a number of programs:

Reparative Probation--adjudicated in court, found guilty and sentenced to a restorative meeting in addition to being supervised by a Probation Officer
Restorative Justice Alternative (pre-charge)--referred for a restorative response prior to being charged for the offense. These referrals primarily come from local police departments or schools.
Restorative Justice Alternative (charged)--referred for a restorative response after being charged but instead of being adjudicated in court.

Restorative Justice Panel Meetings

The MCJC has seven Montpelier Restorative Justice Panel meetings a month, plus two each in Waterbury and Northfield, where trained volunteers meet with people who have offended and their victims, if any, to talk about what happened, identify who was harmed and how, and collaboratively create an agreement to make amends and not reoffend. Panel members help everyone communicate and make the meeting as comfortable as possible. Meetings are held in a community setting. They are structured, but informal.

The Basics of a Restorative Justice Panel Meeting

Focus on the effect of the wrongdoing--on individuals and community.
Give victims/survivors a chance to ask questions and tell about how they have been harmed.
Have a conversation about what happened.
Work together on a plan for the person who has offended to do what he/she can to make amends for the past and make better choices for the future.

What Happens at a Meeting

Community volunteers run the meeting, which lasts about an hour. Everyone has a chance to talk in turn about

What happened
Who was affected
How people, including the community, were affected
What the person who offended will do to make amends
What the person who offended will do to keep from committing future offenses

The participants at the Restorative Justice Panel work together to write an agreement that may include activities such as

Attend a class to learn about the impact of the incident
Do volunteer work to create a connection with community
Fix damaged property
Write letters of explanation and apology

What Happens after the Meeting

The person who offended returns to a Review Meeting to show that he or she did everything in the agreement
Unless decided otherwise, the person who offended will have two months to complete activities included in the Restorative Justice Agreement
Victims/survivors are invited to the Review Meeting

How it Makes a Difference

Studies show that people who are placed on reparative probation instead of traditional probation are less likely to reoffend. In Vermont, researchers showed that those on reparative probation were 23% less likely to commit another crime than those sentenced to traditional probation, and were 12% less likely to commit another crime after probation ended. The authors of Reparative Versus Standard Probation: Community Justice Outcomes (PDF) tracked 5-year reoffending rates of more than 9,000 persons convicted of misdemeanor crimes between 1998-2000.