Victims of property crimes volunteer to appear at a panel in Seattle or Kent to show youths how their crimes hurt people. Helmer, a psychiatric nurse, has worked with juvenile and adult offenders for years. She is a proponent of restorative justice, the philosophy behind this program, which forces offenders to be responsible to their victims and communities for the harm they've done. The program, one of 17 in King County's new Juvenile Justice Master Plan, is too new to gauge its success, director Gail Pruitt said. The idea is to increase the chance that participants will pay back their victims, complete their community service and stay away from crime.
Participants come from the best and worst neighborhoods of King County.
They recalled slipping on clothes and walking out of department stores with a new wardrobe. At first, they said, they were afraid. Then, for a while, shoplifting was a rush. One girl said she stole as a way to release anger. Each youth described the moments after being caught, when everyone seemed to be staring at them, when they had to face their parents, when they were banned from the store.