Te Ara Whakatika

Inside this issue

Former school teacher and librarian Moya McConnell has taken up the position of restorative justice coordinator at the Dunedin District Court.

Project Turnaround Expands

Pictured on the front page (from left): Linda Gaskin, local Member of Parliament Jim Sutton, Phil Goff, Judge Ryan and Mayor Wynne Raymond.

Bringing victims and offenders together, and reaching an agreement on how the wrong that has been done is best corrected, can achieve much more than the traditional 'production line'. system of justice, says Justice Minister Phil Goff.

Speaking at the launch of the expansion of Project Turnaround in Timaru, the Minister said that for New Zealand's justice system to be truly effective, "we need more than simple reliance on imprisonment, because international experience shows that the best way to turn around the lives of offenders is not in prisons.

"Early intervention is the most effective way of preventing crime by dealing with its causes, and more is being, and will continue to be done, in this area."

Mr Goff said that restorative justice was an innovative and effective way of reducing re-offending, as Project Turnaround had demonstrated.

"Victims, traditionally overlooked in mainstream justice, have a central role to play in the process. Offenders are encouraged to take a personal responsibility for their offending. The process also enables the question to be asked, 'why did the offence happen?', and an effort to be made to address underlying problems."

Project Turnaround had its beginnings in 1995, when Timaru was selected to be one of the Crime Prevention Unit's three pilot sites, trialing the use of community panels in adult diversion.

The project has dealt with more than 750 cases since 1996. Two-thirds have involved victims, and agreements have been reached at almost all conferences. Approximately 90 percent of offenders complete all aspects of their plans within agreed timeframes.

Twelve months after completion of the programme, 82 percent of offenders had not re-offended - an enviable rate compared to other areas of the justice system, said Mr Goff.

Evaluations of Project Turnaround by the University of Auckland in 1998 and the Institute of Criminology at Victoria University in 1999 were both very positive.

Victims were generally satisfied with the process, and comparisons with a control group showed that offenders had re-offended at a lesser rate, and at a lesser level of seriousness. The community panel diversion approach was also shown to be cost effective.

Offenders and victims generally found the experience more positive and meaningful than alternative justice processes.

Mr Goff said that restorative justice processes allow a response that is relevant to the circumstances of the offence and the needs and characteristics of the victim and offender.

"The victim can confront the offender with the impact the offence has had on them. And both the victim and offender can develop a direct and personal plan to repair the harm.

"Because of these benefits from restorative justice, the Sentencing, Parole and Victims Rights Acts in 2002 for the first time gave statutory recognition to restorative justice processes in the criminal justice system.

Project Turnaround coordinator Linda Gaskin (left) says the project works closely with the Police so that offenders in many types of cases are diverted away from the court and into the project's community panel restorative justice process. "If they complete the agreements reached in the restorative justice process, the Police will usually withdraw the charges." Project Turnaround has this year been expanded to provide opportunities for victims and offenders in more serious cases to be involved in its restorative justice processes after conviction but before sentencing. "The experience gained in dealing with close to 800 cases tells us that this expansion into more serious cases is something that will work," says Linda.

Other factors prompting the expansion include "the introduction of the new legislation, and just following the progress of the (court-referred) pilots and thinking the time is as good as it ever will be to take that next step.

"We've felt limited because you can only go so far in the cases which the police and courts and victims and community feel comfortable diverting," says Linda. "This expansion allows us to take it further and not be constrained by the level of offending."

Project Turnaround has had "nothing but positive support from our community. Having backing from Judge Edward Ryan as resident District Court Judge for our first five years, and the support from Mayor Wynne Raymond, the Police and others have been critical to the success of the project."

Innovative outcomes

Innovative outcomes from court-referred restorative justice conferences have ranged from mowing lawns to helping develop videos to enable businesses to avoid future crime.

"Potential outcomes are really dependent on the imagination of the people at conferences," says Auckland District Court restorative justice coordinator Islay Brown.

"In more than one case where there has been fraud or theft by an employee, the business has asked the offender to help compile a video or develop some form of training to assist them to identify and avoid that type of offending in the future. In other cases offenders have worked in victims' gardens or mowed their lawns"

The flexibility of outcomes - which often have real meaning and significance for victims - is seen as one of the strengths of restorative justice by coordinators reflecting on the pilot as it nears the end of its four-year term.

"There have been some wonderful and very imaginative outcomes, and some very satisfied customers," says former Dunedin coordinator Cathy Brown.

Feedback from conferences suggests that many victims and offenders who have taken part in the court-referred restorative justice process have found the experience positive. "Anecdotally it would seem to have been a roaring success," says Cathy, "and we're awaiting the results of the evaluation with anticipation." The results of the evaluation of the pilot are expected to be published in February 2005.

Islay says that face to face exchanges between offenders and victims "affect them deeply and long term. I don't think people will forget those meetings."

Hamilton District Court restorative justice coordinator Marianne Lammers agrees: "People who think restorative justice is a soft option for offenders might change their mind after sitting in on a conference. More often than not conferences require a huge effort from offenders. It is a lot easier to stand in court and get a lawyer to speak for you and to just take what is coming.

"To have to face a person you have wronged, to see the anger and hear about the devastation in their lives is not easy."

Islay has been encouraged by the fact that many victims and offenders involved in conferences have indicated that they'd recommend restorative justice to other people.

"This includes cases where the victims were particularly traumatised and were really grouchy before the conference and wanted their pound of flesh. After the conference they were positive about the facilitators and were also able to see the offender in a different light."

Waitakere coordinator Garry Summers says that the restorative justice process helps to highlight the wider impact of many offences.

"In a burglary case in court you might be aware of one victim, but at a restorative justice conference you see how wide-ranging the impact has been. The offender might have thought an insurance company would pay for the lost items, so it was no big deal. At the conference they learn what sentimental items meant to the victim, and hear about the daughter who is afraid to go into her bedroom and the mum who toots the horn every time she arrives home."

Cathy believes the court-referred pilot "has helped bring restorative justice into greater focus. When I started there were about 10 community groups doing restorative justice around the country. The count now would be at least 30."

Garry praised "the dedication of the core group of facilitators that started off in 2001 and are still there. These people have been willing to give up their weekends and after-hours, putting the community and restorative justice before personal and family commitments."

Marianne says the pilot has shown that "restorative justice can be a successful experience even if the process doesn't result in a conference. To have just spoken to a facilitator, to have been able to tell their story, can be such a relief to some victims that they don't need to go to a conference."

Cathy agrees. "Good work has been done in cases that don't go to conference. The fact that a victim is invited to say 'no' and says 'no' can be the best thing out for some of them."

Facilitation info at the fingertips

Facilitators working for Restorative Justice Auckland Trust have a range of practical information at their fingertips.

Each of the group's 15 facilitators are given a manual - called a facilitation information pack - which includes everything from a list of conference venues to timesheets.

Facilitator Fiona Landon says the pack is a "practical hands-on collection of information" that facilitators are given when they join the group.

The pack includes material on the trust, its aims and principles, code of ethics and code of practice. Referral processes are outlined, along with information on conferences, confidentiality, training plans, performance management, supervision, safety and complaints procedures. A facilitators' guide provides "a step-by-step checklist of things to remember to do."

Copies of the various forms used by facilitators are included in the pack, as well as an outline of roles and responsibilities, information about payments, useful telephone numbers and a reading list.

The Auckland group's mentoring process is also detailed. "Each case handled by the trust is allocated a mentor," explains Fiona. "Both facilitators can have contact with the mentor at any time during the case that they want to check things out. At the end of the conference the mentor sits down and goes through the case with them and looks at what worked well and what didn't, and what training issues were raised."

Fiona says she refers to the pack's list of potential conference venues "all the time. It can be time-consuming trying to figure out where to go, and having it all there is quite helpful." The checklist is particularly useful for "people starting out and worried about getting everything right. Having a list they can check off to make sure they've crossed all the t's and dotted the i's is helpful.

"The conference guide is also used by a lot of people when they're starting out to remind them of what to say."

Fiona says the pack is an evolving resource which can be updated and modified as needed.

For further information, phone 09-2639235 or email rjsa@wave.co.nz

New coordinator for Dunedin court

The concept of restorative justice has always appealed to Moya McConnell (right), who has taken up the position of restorative justice coordinator at the Dunedin District Court. "Restorative justice offers great opportunities in terms of people accepting responsibilities for their actions, and seeing the impact those actions have on victims," she says. "When I saw the advertisement in the paper for the job, I thought this is a new direction for me." Moya, who was "born and bred" in Dunedin, has worked as a school teacher and librarian.

Prior to taking on the job as restorative justice coordinator, she was a project worker for Family Start, working with groups of socially isolated mothers - including a group of new migrants from a wide range of ethnic backgrounds.

Moya has replaced Cathy Brown, who is moving to Bannockburn in Central Otago, where her and her husband have a vineyard.

Countdown to Albany conference

More than 200 delegates are expected to attend the New Frontiers in Restorative Justice conference being hosted by Massey University's Centre for Justice and Peace Development at Albany from December 2 to 5.

Centre director Warwick Tie expects the majority of delegates to come from overseas - from the Pacific, Asia, Africa, Europe, and North and Central America.

"The conference is exploring the application of restorative principles beyond criminal justice, and asks what might become of restorative justice in the process of its mobilisation in those new fields.

"The new fields we're looking at include domestic and sexual violence, human rights abuses, religiously motivated violence and indigenous land grievances. In addition, further thought is being given to the development of professional standards and values."

Keynote speakers include Professor Howard Zehr of the Eastern Mennonite University in Virginia, Professor Joan Pennell from the Department of Social Work at North Carolina State University, Sir Charles Pollard of the Youth Justice Board and Justice Research Consortium in the United Kingdom, Dr Chris Marshall from Victoria University, and Anita Jowitt from the School of Law at the University of the South Pacific.

Up to 50 delegate papers will be presented at the conference, which is being supported by the Ministry of Justice, New Zealand Law Foundation, the Office of the Chief District Court Judge, Ministry of Education, NZAID and the New Zealand Police.

For further information, contact:

Warwick Tie, Email: w.j.tie@massey.ac.nz, Phone (09) 414 0800 Centre for Justice and Peace Development, Massey University, Private Bag 102904, North Shore MSC, Auckland Website: http://justpeace.massey.ac.nz/

Te Ara Whakatika is produced by the Ministry of Justice to ensure the wide community of people who support the restorative justice movement are kept informed about the court-referred restorative justice project. The items in this newsletter do not necessarily reflect the views of the Ministry of Justice or official policies. Articles in this newsletter may be copied and reproduced, but Te Ara Whakatika must be acknowledged. Te Ara Whakatika can be viewed online at www.justice.govt.nz/crrj.

Inquiries regarding the court-referred restorative justice project should be directed to: Alison Hill, Ministry of Justice, PO Box 180, Wellington, Phone (04) 918 8839, Fax (04) 918 8820, email: alison.hill@justice.govt.nz; or to co-ordinators Islay Brown (Auckland) Phone 025 745 141, (09) 916 9000; Garry Summers (Waitakere) Phone (025) 271 5148, (09) 916 5268; Marianne Lammers (Hamilton) Phone (07) 957 7816, (025) 271 5203; Moya McConnell ( Dunedin) Phone (03) 471 5170. Te Ara Whakatika mailing list inquiries should be directed to: Abpost, PO Box 38756, Petone, Wellington. Fax (04) 568 3400.