12-39 Restorative Justice as Healing for Victims/Offenders
Channel: PopulistDialogues
Date: 2012-09-20

The criminal justice system separately the victim and the offender.  The state assumes the interests of the victim, thereby not allowing the victim a seat at the table except as victim. And for the offender, the state never asks that he/she admit fault and responsibility for the harms done.  Restorative justice seeks to make the victim an active part in addressing the harm and encourages the offender to accept their responsibility for the harms caused by their actions.  

Guest Gina Ronning, with the Insight Development Group and Pacific Green Party, advocates for the use of restorative justice in parallel with the criminal justice system.  And explains how the people involved as both victim and offender are "healed" in the process.