Handbook on Restorative justice programmes

Restorative justice

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This section of the handbook presents information on the main types of
restorative justice programmes, including victim offender mediation pro-
grammes, community and family group conferencing, circle sentencing
and reparative probation. It also includes a discussion of indigenous and
customary justice forums and the main characteristics of existing criminal
justice programmes.
As emphasized in the Basic Principles, restorative justice programmes
complement rather than replace the existing criminal justice system. A
restorative intervention can be used at any stage of the criminal justice
process, although in some instances amendments to existing laws may be
required. Generally speaking, there are within a criminal justice system
four main points at which a restorative justice process can be successfully
initiated: (a) at the police level (pre-charge); (b) prosecution level (post-
charge but usually before a trial), (c) at the court level (either at the pre-
trial or sentencing stages; and, (d) corrections (as an alternative to
incarceration, as part of or in addition to, a non-custodial sentence, dur-
ing incarceration, or upon release from prison. In some countries, restora-
tive interventions are possible in parallel to the prosecution. In Belgium,
for example, mediation can also be offered when the public prosecutor
has already decided to prosecute the suspect.
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At any one of these points,
an opportunity can be created for officials to use their discretionary pow-
ers and refer an offender to a restorative justice programme (See figure I). 
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8 
See: the Belgian Mediation for Redress Programme which focuses on more serious crimes. The
mediation is carried out by an independent mediator and when an agreement is reached, this
can be added to judicial file of the offender and can be considered as part of the sentencing
process. (Aertsen, et al., 2004: 24).
2. The use of 
restorative approaches

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A restorative process can also be initiated in some cases instead of bring-
ing a particular crime or conflict to the attention of the criminal justice
system in the first place. This is the case, for instance, in school-based
programmes using mediation or other restorative processes to deal with
minor behavioural problems that take place within the school community.
As well, restorative programmes can also operate in neighbourhood 
mediation centres. 
Finally, police officers can often also informally incorporate restorative
justice principles into their decision-making when they are called upon to
intervene on the street, in situations of minor disorder or conflict or in
specific contexts, such as schools. 
Generally, cases involving more serious incidents are referred to the
restorative justice process later in the criminal justice system.
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A compre-
hensive approach to the implementation of restorative justice pro-
grammes within a national system would normally provide a range of
programmes designed for referrals from different points within the crimi-
nal justice process.