Forgiveness : A Victim Offender Mediation Story With The Community Justice Initiatives Association

The essence of mediation is controversial, in some cases it makes the situation better and others it could make the situation far worse. There is mediation for rapes and violent assaults, and now mediation between drunk driving accidents has become more popular. Mediation really depends on the circumstance and there must be great precaution taken in regards to whether it can work or not. When it comes to the case of the Serrell’s this study suggests that mediation would not be of great value. The study explains “In fact, there may be little or no conflict to mediate and restitution, especially in cases of a lost life, may be impossible or meaningless” (Marty Price). The interesting part of this information is that the Serrell’s somehow despite the pain, looked beyond the death of their daughter and decided to engage in changing the life of Susanna. The study continues to explain that the primary focus of the meeting is to have an opportunity for the victim and offender to contribute to each other’s healing by sharing their pains and regrets. This is exactly what the Serrell’s did. This study gave greater insight into the conditions of their case because it also explained what the mediator needs and what they need to help the defendant. For example, the mediator needs an understanding of the victim’s experience, experience in dealing with grief, and the ability to collaborate with other professionals. For the offender, they need an understanding of the criminal justice system, the ability to relate with no judgments, and the ability to negotiate. It is compelling to know the products of mediation and interesting to see how the workings of mediation truly did apply to the Serrell

Fagliano, S. (2008, May 19). How Victim-Offender Mediation Impacts Juvenile Offenders. Retrieved from Stanford.edu: http://web.stanford.edu/dept/URBS/programs/documents/faglianothesis.pdf

As is David’s case he was ordered by the court to have no contact with his victim’s family. This seems to prevent closure for David and does not let allow him to show the positive changes he made in his life. David had no prior knowledge of his victim his case was an example of wrong place at the wrong time, while under the influence of substances. The court attempts to protect the victims of abuse by not allowing perpetrators to have contact, but victim-offender mediation has been an effective program that benefits both

Unlike the diversionary program, this program isn’t intended to offer offenders less punishment to their crimes, much less be attentive to their needs, instead, it seeks to offer victims the chance to encounter their offender and ask questions about the crime only they know the answers to. While equally important, the therapeutic restorative justice programs have been effective for victims to be able to heal and obtain answers to those troubling questions they may have for their offender. This has led to a program by Kim Book called the Victims Voices Heard Program that aims to specifically help only the victims of sexual violence or crimes that have taken place by people who know one another. The goal of this program is to heal victims from self-blame and from the fear that has been inflicted upon them. Miller later provides an example as to how the program has been effective for one offender and victim that proves the program to be of great assistance and

Victim offender mediation works to bring conflicting parties together to engage in speaking and hopefully negotiating a mutually agreeable solution (Dhami, 2016). Research shows that the most common outcome of victim offender mediation is an apology and is often expected by the parties (Dhami, 2016). Victims may decide on the mediation process to teach the offender a lesson in accountability. During the process, typically the offender is required to admit responsibility, acknowledge harm, express remorse, promise they will not do the offense again, and offer some form of restitution (Dhami, 2016).

Restorative justice takes responsibility to prevent these harmful attitudes and feelings. Criticism of RJ in Hate Crimes The most obvious issue in regard to using RJ with hate crime is tackling the power imbalance between the parties. Remedi, a non-profit organization that facilitates mediations, notes that mediations would not occur in many instances of violent crimes or harassment will not go through mediation because of the risk of repeat victimization. Another issue in regards to using RJ to deal with hate crime is whether it responds to hate offenders to changes their views, stop

Forgiveness has a different context depending on where the person is from or what he believes. Religion places a great emphasis on the view of forgiveness.

Receiving the forgiveness of someone who has been wronged is a hard thing to do, it takes an understanding of one another for it to be achieved. One must see what was done wrong and why it affected the person the way it did. However, it isn’t just a one-way street, the affected person must also understand why the action was committed and what emotion or emotions drove it. The act of giving forgiveness and gaining it requires an effort from both sides to be made in order for the emotional healing process to begin. This concept is shown in numerous areas throughout the book, Touching Spirit Bear. There are many periods of time in the book where a character recognizes how they’ve impacted another character, whether it be physically or emotionally

The victim offender mediation was talked about in Restoring Justice chapter 2. In a victim offender mediation the victim and offender both get together and talk about what happened. I think that this would really help both the victim and the offender get passed what has happened. It could help the offender to explain why they did the crime but also because it would let the offender see what has happened to the victim as a result of what they have done. Usually the victim never gets to share how the crime has affected them and sometimes they never really move forward and get over what has happened.

According to Victim-Offender Mediation and Violent Crimes: On the way to Justice by Ilyssa Wellikoff says, "Victim-offender mediation, which developed in the United States around 1970, has obtained a reputation as being an effective and viable form of restorative justice. This program unites victims with their offenders in order to facilitate dialogue that will aid in both the victim's and the offender's healing. " The United States focuses more on just punishing the offender and does not consider how the victim feels of the situation. The United States first instinct is to keep reincarnating the offender instead of trying to figure out a better solution for them. Victim-offender mediation allows the victim to be part of the process after the offence has been made.

They discuss the crime and what impact it has had on both the victim and the offender. Restorative process consists of individuals who give support to the offender and the victim during their conversation. There are mediators which help the victim and the offender in the discussion of the impact of the crime and try to help resolve any issues. This process is generally separated into three different portions; these are the preparation for the pre-conference, the conference, and the follow up conference.

In this research design, the purpose of the study will be to understand if there is a correlation between juvenile delinquency and victim offender mediation. In the adult criminal justice system, victim offender mediation has been something that has shown great success in situations where both parties are open to the program. In the instance of juvenile delinquents, the question is whether victim offender mediation will have a positive effect on the juveniles, therefore leading to a higher percentage of recidivism and lower amount of juvenile arrests and court cases. Victim-offender mediation is a process that provides interested victims of primarily property crimes and minor assaults the opportunity to meet the juvenile or adult offender,

Alternative dispute resolution (ADR) refers to “any means of settling disputes outside of the courtroom” (Siegel, Schmalleger, & Worral, 2018, p. 457). In light of heavy caseloads and budgetary constraints, ADR is becoming an increasingly popular alternative to court and incarceration. Presuming I am the victim in this case, I would opt for victim-offender mediation. The purpose of victim-offender mediation is very similar to ADR’s mediation, the difference being that instead of trying to settle a dispute, victim-offender mediation seeks to repair the harm done by crime. According to our text “there are four steps to the process, case referral and intake, preparation for mediation, mediation, and follow-up” (Siegel, Schmalleger, & Worral,

The modern field of restorative justice developed in the 1970’s from case experiments in several communities with a proportionately sizable Mennonite population. Mennonites and other practitioners in Ontario, Canada, and later in Indiana, experimented with victim offender encounters that led to programs in these communities and later became models for programs throughout the

Throughout the course of human history, violence has been a reoccurring theme in the conquest for power in countries across the planet. Understanding the ideology behind some of this violence have puzzled historians and psychologists for centuries; furthermore, the presence of reconciliation between the victims and perpetrators after some of these horrific acts of terror is even more astonishing. This form of reconciliation was a significant factor during South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) formed in 1996. After close analysis, I have been able to identify the difference between the similar terms of reconciliation and forgiveness, understand the evaluation process of reconciliation between victims and perpetrators