Victim Offender Mediation is a voluntary, confidential process in which trained community mediators organize face to face meetings between offenders and victims of crime. Referrals come from Juvenile Department staff. During the mediation process the facts of a case are revealed, feelings about the offense are expressed and restitution agreements are negotiated.
Victims often have questions which only their offender can answer.
Victim Offender Mediation provides a unique opportunity for this questioning to take place in a safe, controlled environment. In mediation, victims are encouraged to express, directly to their offender, how the crime affected them. Without mediation, offenders are rarely confronted with the human consequences of their actions. In mediation, victims play an active role in determining the amount of restitution and in deciding how it is to be repaid. Victim Offender mediation gives offenders an opportunity to explain the circumstances surrounding the incident-to tell their story.