Group pushes restorative justice concept

Coalition seeks Princeton pilot program.

By: Jennifer Potash
   Instead of sending juveniles to jail for nonviolent crimes and risk gaining a more hardened criminal and a dissatisfied victim at the end of a sentence, a group of local residents want to encourage Mercer County to follow a different path to justice.
   Mercer County Coalition for Restorative Justice, formed in 2003 by members of an interfaith prison ministry in Princeton Borough and West Windsor, wants to form a pilot program, perhaps in Princeton and eventually in the entire county, that seeks to resolve nonviolent juvenile crimes outside the traditional courtroom.
   The group held an information meeting at Trinity Church on Monday to rally support and drew about 20 people, including Princeton Borough Police Capt. Anthony Federico.
   Restorative justice is a voluntary process that uses mediation to resolve primarily property crimes. Both the victim and the offender must agree to participate and the cases are typical refereed as an alternative to prosecution. A trained mediator first interviews both the victim and offender and then brings the parties together for a session aimed at developing a restitution plan so that the offender is held accountable and takes responsibility for the crime.
   Coalition Chairwoman Dorothy Moote said the organization studied various restorative justice programs and found that victims are far more satisfied with the outcome and offenders are more likely to fulfill the restitution obligations.
   "The victim is the linchpin," she said. "The victim is driving the restitution dialogue with the offender."
   One program in Lancaster County, Pa., found a 17-percent recidivism rate among juvenile offenders in the restorative justice program compared to a 35-percent recidivism rate by juveniles engaged in the normal court process.
   Drew Smith, a Trenton native who has worked in the state Corrections Department and has a restorative justice consulting firm, described the effect of putting the offender and the victim together in a room.
   "I’ve been involved in the criminal justice system for 26 years and this is the hardest thing I’ve ever seen in my life," he said, referring to the emotional impact of having offender and victim face each other. "When a young man walked in the room and saw the mother of his victim, when he saw her face, he said it was harder than going to jail."
   Mr. Smith said one approach, a community circle discussion — which brings young people, parents, clergy, police, school officials and community leaders into a room together — may help break kids’ enthusiasm or infatuation with street gangs.
   Strong community involvement in the lives of teenagers and young adults will lessen the appeal of street gangs, said several ministers who attended the meeting.
   "One thing about the need to join a gang will never change if (teenagers) need security, need family or need some type of healing that is not happening at home," said the Rev. Charles Atkins, who is a chaplain at the Garden State Youth Correctional Facility and a former gang member.
   For more information about the restorative justice program, contact Ms. Moote at (609) 252-0224.