Restorative justice case studies

Here in the ACT, more than 90% of people who take part in restorative justice find it to be helpful.

People who have been harmed through a criminal offence often find that meeting or communicating with the person who has harmed them helps them to:

• take back the sense of control they might feel they’ve lost
• move forward
• feel more positive about the future.

For those who have committed an offence, restorative justice can help them to own their actions and make things right again. It can also reduce the likelihood of them harming someone else in the future.

The following story is based on real events, but names and some details have been changed to protect the identities of those involved.

We have also made a comic to tell another story about the restorative justice process [PDF 4.41MB].

The person responsible's perspective

I dropped out of high school and got into a bad situation with a bunch of guys from my suburb. One day we broke into a house and stole a heap of stuff. Then we took off with the car and ended up writing it off.

After we got busted, the police said I could do restorative justice or go to court. Meeting the people I hurt – Chris and Leigh, was really nerve-wracking because I knew I had done a terrible thing to them. But I also knew it was the right thing to do and it was better than going to court.

Chris and Leigh had heaps of questions. Like why we had robbed them, and why we made such a mess. I told them I didn’t really have the answers, but that I’d been angry and confused at the time and it felt easy to do what my mates were doing. Seeing how upset they were really made me think about what I’d done.

We made an agreement that I would go back to school and do guidance counselling every week to get back on track. I did what I said I would and stopped hanging out with the wrong people.

I’ve just started college and never thought I would get here. I can honestly say that owning my actions and doing restorative justice has turned my life around.

The victim's perspective

As soon as we got back home it was clear that something had happened. It was extremely upsetting. It wasn’t just that we’d been robbed, it was the invasion of our space and the senseless destruction. We felt scared that whoever had done it might come back. We were glad when the police called a few weeks later to say they’d arrested the people who did it.

We had a lot of questions. We wanted to know why they targeted us. We wanted to know why they made such a mess of the house and car. It seemed so unnecessary and somehow personal. Some of the items they took would have been of no value to them but for us they were of great sentimental importance.

When we met at the conference it was clear that Ben was anxious and remorseful. His grandfather, Joe, was also very upset about what Ben had done, and the two of them were in tears at one point. We all were.

Ben didn’t have answers to all of our questions, but he assured us that the offence wasn’t personal, and that we weren’t targeted.

Doing restorative justice didn’t change what had happened, but it did help change how we felt about it. We went from feeling angry, scared and confused to understanding better what had happened and empowered to help make sure Ben wouldn’t make the same mistakes again and cause harm to anyone else. Our agreement with him really focused on this. The convenor let us know that he’s done everything he agreed to, and that he’s now in college. This made it feel like something positive came out of what would otherwise have been a very negative experience. The support we got from our convenor really helped us move on from a place of fear and anger to one of validation, acceptance and understanding.

Joe’s story - the supporter's perspective

Ben’s a good kid at heart but he really lost his way for a while. I felt gutted listening to Chris and Leigh talk about all the things that Ben and his so-called mates had done to their house and car. How it made them feel. But I was also proud of my grandson for taking responsibility for what he did and showing how sorry he was. It was a big step for Ben to answer all our questions even when the truth was pretty shameful.

Doing restorative justice was hard but good. I learned some things about Ben in the process – about some of the events that led him down the wrong track. Knowing this stuff has helped me and the family support him to stop it happening again.

Not everybody gets a second chance. Ben did. And we are very grateful to the police and Chris and Leigh and restorative justice for giving him another go. The things I learnt about Ben at the conference helped me to support him to stick to the agreement and go back to school. Ben knew I was happy he owned what he did and met with Chis and Leigh, but he didn’t do it for me. He did it to try to make things up to Chris and Leigh. He did it to put things right. And he did it to make a new future for himself.

The convenor’s perspective

A really important aspect of restorative justice is about empowering people who have been harmed by an offence to determine what steps should be taken to help repair the damage caused.

For Chris and Leigh, having a safe and supportive space to explain the impact of the offence and ask their questions of Ben was of central importance. Even though Ben didn’t have the answers to some of their questions, his willingness to listen, understand and apologise allowed them to shift away from a place of fear and hurt, and move towards one of peace and healing.

Our experience is that restorative justice will result in a positive outcome for all participants. This is because we work closely with participants at every stage of the process and tailor our approach to meet their needs.

The police officer’s perspective

I remember this offence, and the subsequent conference, very well. It’s not often that referring officers get to see this part of the restorative process, so it was a privilege that Chris, Leigh and Ben were comfortable having me involved.

Ben felt bad for what he did and was willing to take responsibility for his actions. I recall how powerful it was to have Ben sit face-to-face with Chris and Leigh, knowing he could leave at any time but actually wanting to be there. It was different and refreshing compared to other experiences I’d had in the past.

I’ve heard others suggest restorative justice is a soft option or an easy way out. I can assure you that this is not the case. Unlike a court case, there are no calls of 'hearsay' or 'objection' to facts. There is just a truthful discussion – with no sugar coating. In this case, Chris and Leigh were able to ask the questions that they wanted answered. Ben was truthful and sincere in his responses, even when he didn’t really have all the answers.

I did not ask Ben any questions but got to talk about how I met Ben, why I sent him to the restorative justice and was asked what I thought Ben could do to make amends for his actions. I learned more about Ben and the impacts of what he did by listening to everyone speak.

In the end, Ben was not just able to admit guilt, but he was able to understand the grief and pain that Chris and Leigh experienced. I could see that going through that experience together had strengthened the relationship between Joe and Ben, and I felt confident that with his support Ben would follow through on what he agreed to do. I wasn’t surprised when the convenor let me know that this had occurred, and that Ben had started college.