Victims Confront Offenders, Face To Face

Victims Confront Offenders, Face To Face July 28, 2011 Audio for this story from Talk of the Nation will be available at approx. 6:00 p.m. ET.

Guests Sujatha Baliga, senior program specialist, National Council on Crime and Delinquency Robert Johnson, former president, National District Attorneys Association July 28, 2011 Even when criminal cases end in guilty verdicts, sometimes victims need more. A growing number of jurisdictions are giving offenders and victims a chance to meet each other, and even reconcile. Some go further, giving crime victims a say in the offenders’ punishment, without ever going to trial.

Join us tonight for training

The first evening of training begins tonight at East Side Lutheran Church, 1300 E 10th St., Sioux Falls. Even if you haven’t registered yet, you can register on-site. Training begins at 6:30 and will go until 9:00 p.m. Same schedule for Thursday, followed by all day Saturday. $35, refundable if you chose to become a mediator for Restore. Find out what restorative justice means and how it can transform the justice system! All are welcome!

Mediation training

Restore to offer June Mediator Training

‘Introduction to Restorative Justice and Victim-Offender Mediation’

Restore will offer mediation training to the public on Tuesday, June 21^st from 6:30 to 9:00 pm, continuing on Thursday, June 23^rd from 6:30 to 9:00 p.m. and concluding on Saturday, June 25^th, from 8:30 to 4:30 p.m.  Training will be held at East Side Lutheran Church, 1300 E 10th Street in Sioux Falls.  The training workshop will also include an introduction to the approach to crime and conflict resolution known as restorative justice.  It is open to all members of the community.

The training draws also on the transformative model of conflict resolution. Participants will leave the training with an understanding of “the language of conflict,” approaches to resolving conflict which recognize and empower the participants, and the skills and techniques which will enable them to serve as volunteer mediators in the victim-offender mediation program through Restore, if desired. The training is open to the general public, including youth and elders. No prior mediation experience is required, just an interest in learning more about peaceful solutions to conflict and opportunities to apply it. Participants will leave the training with an understanding of “the language of conflict,” approaches to resolving conflict which recognize and empower the participants, and with skills and techniques that will enable them to apply their learning with groups, business, and relationships.

Pre-registration is required.  Additional information and registration forms may be downloaded here.

Cost is $35 which will cover cost of supplies.  Fees are payable in advance with registration.  Those who attend all three sessions will receive a copy of Howard Zehr’s  The Little Book of Restorative Justice.  Scholarships are available.

Training will be by Dr. John Gehm, former Professor of Criminal Justice at the University of South Dakota and the Director of Restore. Gehm has been a researcher, mediator and trainer for over 20 years and also serves on the board of directors of the National Association for Community Mediation.

Pre-registration is required. Registration forms can be downloaded from the website.  Call Restore 605-338-6020, send an e-mail to  restore-sd@sio.midco.net or use the “Contact Us” page to obtain more information.

 

Transformative mediation and restorative justice?

A recent post by Hofstra’s Institute for the Study of Conflict Transformation caught my attention.  They have recently published a tremendously useful source book entitled Transformative Mediation: A Sourcebook.  I would invite you to investigate the transformative model first put forward by Folger and Bush many years ago.   I believe that what it shares in common with restorative justice is the awareness of and respect for the integrity of the individuals who are in conflict not necessarily due to a problem needing to be solved but a context to be understood.  How often do we go right to the ‘fix it’ model without giving people a chance to tell their stories with respect, without interruption, and taken seriously.  As RJ continues to mature and transform I think it is worth our attention to think about how we move beyond victim-offender mediation and understand that, at root, we are about peacemaking and community.  What do you think?

What place does transformative mediation have in Court-connected programs?

“More than 1000 cases are referred to the Mediation Center of Dutchess County each year from courts and similar agencies. In one recent year, more than 600 cases were business disputes such as landlord/tenant and consumer/merchant issues referred from twelve local courts. More than 180 cases of child custody/ visitation/ support issues between parents or extended family were referred from Family Court; and Supreme Court has referred adult guardianship cases…. Transformative mediation is used in all of these cases. Negotiating the transition to transformative practice in courts came down to explaining what we would do that would meet the courts’ own goals.

“We explained ‘empowerment’ as helping people become clear about their situation so that decisions could be made. ‘Recognition’ was explained as understanding the other person’s point of view. We talked about mediation as a ‘conversation’ between parties. ‘Changing interaction’ meant that decisions could be made and next steps could be taken because something had changed between the parties. These explanations were helpful to the courts because these goals were not inconsistent with their own. Transformative values are present — in the work that we do and in the relationships that have been fostered.”

I would urge us all to explore the possibilities of who we are, where we’ve come from and to consider the possibilities of approach crime, conflict and dispute resolution from an integrative framework.  

As always your comments are welcomed!

what are the possibilities of an integrative framework?

Information night

Restore will host its second Public Information reception at the downtown branch of the Sioux Falls Public Library.  This will be an opportunity to learn about restorative justice, see examples of victim-offender mediation, and strategies for increasing the use of these successful  programs in our community.  There will be opportunities for questions and answers with the director of Restore, John Gehm.   The event begins at 6:30 and ends at 8:00.  Refreshments will be provided.

NEWS: RESTORE Director Elected to National Board

Mesa, Arizona, 04/11/2011 — Frustrated neighbors, feuding families, and others caught in stressful situations have a new advocate in their quest to finally put their conflicts to rest.  John Gehm, Director of Restore, Inc. has recently been elected to the Board of Directors of the National Association for Community Mediation.  In this new capacity, John Gehm will serve as a national advocate for increased awareness, accessibility, and utilization of constructive community mediation and other conflict-assistance services.

Community mediation helps those in difficult conflicts directly engage the other side and work through the situation using a trained, impartial mediator.  From noisy neighbors to family fall-outs, interpersonal spats to embattled public policy divisions, community mediation works to move individuals and entire communities from conflict to concord.  In fact, over 400 community mediation programs throughout the country assist countless individuals each year in overcoming seemingly impossible problems to discover their own customized resolutions to earlier discord.

Through Gehm’s new role, programs everywhere will benefit from his extensive background and local experience helping our own community better engage its conflicts.  He will work to equip and enhance these services in other communities, as he shares this national platform and wisdom through his continued service to our own area residents.

For additional information, please contact: Justin R. Corbett, Executive Director of the National Association for Community Mediation (NAFCM), at (602) 633-4213 or admin@nafcm.org.

Additional information about NAFCM: In communities around the globe, programs and volunteers share their expertise to help others constructively engage, transform, and resolve conflict.  NAFCM supports these peacemakers by aggregating their wisdom, amplifying their voice, and advancing their critical work.  An active advocate for constructive conflict-assistive services, NAFCM support the over 400 community mediation programs across the U.S. and many others internationally.  For more information, including an interactive map of local programs and resources to help you move beyond conflict, please visit www.nafcm.org.

 Justin R. Corbett

National Association for Community Mediation

(602) 633-4213

admin@nafcm.org

www.nafcm.org

We incarcerate too many youth and our government is broke

We incarcerate too many youth and our government is broke—we’ve heard both laments lately in the news. The cry goes up for an effective way to deal with youthful offenders—a way that is cost effective, proven, humane, and rehabilitative. The answer is here: Restorative Justice.

Restorative Justice is an age-old way of dealing with infractions upon societal norms. It involves those who have been wronged, and allows them to have a say in the outcome. It holds the perpetrator directly responsible for the wrong-doing, and seeks to reintegrate him or her into the community. It is an alternative to incarceration that reduces recidivism and costs, and provides better emotional outcomes for victims and offenders. It involves a face-to-face meeting between the parties to get answers and provide accountability. Meetings are facilitated by an experienced mediator.

RESTORE, Inc, formerly the Victim-Offender Mediation Program, has offered this service in southeastern South Dakota for nearly 20 years.  The program is underutilized, however, and is ready to step in today to alleviate budget and other problems associated with nonviolent juvenile offenders.  Restorative Justice programs have been used across the United States for over 25 years, but are based in indigenous practices that have been in use for thousands of years.  Dozens of studies exist to prove their effectiveness. In South Dakota, the Center for Restorative Justice in Rapid City was created under the leadership of Judge Merton B. Tice, Jr. in 1997, and mediates many cases each year. I helped set up programs in Indiana, New Hampshire, and Michigan that have been in operation for decades. As a consultant to the National Institute of Corrections, I have evaluated the effectiveness of such programs and have published many articles in the field.  I know it works.

It’s time for South Dakota to stop thinking about punishment only in terms of jail and prison.  Thinking about crime through the lens of restorative justice translates into a philosophy of  making things right—for the victim, the offender, and the community as a whole. RESTORE is ready to put Restorative Justice to work. The question is, is South Dakota ready for a better approach?

Encountering Forgiveness Workshop

Forgiveness Workshop at University of Sioux Falls

The University of Sioux Falls presents “Encountering Forgiveness,” a workshop led by Dr. John Gehm, on April 15-16.  Through exploratory exercises and skill building, participants will learn to  apply “practical forgiveness”—in its spiritual, ethical, psychological, and interpersonal dimensions.  Workshop hours are Friday from 4:30 p.m.-9:30 p.m. and Saturday from 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.  Cost is $120 for credit, and $40 for non credit.  Call 331-6781 to register.  Or call John Gehm at 338-6020 for more information

Restorative Justice program in Rapid City is featured

In a legal system that focuses on crime as an offense against the state – not an individual – the voices of crime victims are frequently unheard, according to Mark Umbreit, founder of the Center for Restorative Justice & Peacemaking at the University of Minnesota’s School of Social Work.

Umbreit was in Rapid City recently to train case leaders for the local Center for Restorative Justice.

“Conflict is endless,” said Umbreit, who has witnessed the evolution of Restorative Justice over the past four decades as it has emerged as an internationally accepted way of resolving conflict by creating a situation in which those who cause injury can meet the injured and learn firsthand the harm they have caused.

To read the full article, click here.