Juvenile Restitution - Combining Common Sense and Solid Research To Build an Effective Program, Part 1

• NCJ Number: 84124
• Journal: New Designs for Youth Development Volume: 3 Issue: 3 Dated: (May-June 1982) Pages: 3-8
• Author(s): D Maloney; D Gilbeau; M Hoffard; C Remington; D Steenson
• Date Published: 1982
• Length: 6 pages
• Sale Source: National Institute of Justice/
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

Available research shows that juvenile restitution, in the form of monetary payment, community service, and victim service, has benefits for the victim, the offender, the community, the court, and the staff practitioner.

Abstract

Juvenile restitution may involve the offender (1) forfeiting personal savings of work wages to repay the victim for losses due to the offense, (2) working without pay for a community organization for a specified period to symbolically repay community losses from the offense, and (3) working without pay for the victim to repair or replace the damaged of stolen property. Restitution gives victims the opportunity to participate in the court process and the satisfaction of seeing a positive response from the offender and the criminal justice system. The community benefits from restitution because it is a cost-effective method of handling offenders, can provide service to the community from the juvenile, and makes clear to the community that those who behave destructively are being made rationally accountable for their behavior. Restitution benefits the court by giving it a practical means of fulfilling its mandate to act in the interests of the juvenile while also responding to victim and community demands that the offender be held accountable for the damage done by the offense. Restitution benefits the staff practitioner by offering a clear and manageable structure and objective for casework. Further, restitution has the potential of giving the juvenile offender a vehicle for shedding a destructive sense of guilt and building a positive self-image, while learning that he/she is accountable for harm done to others. Available research on effective delinquency remediation techniques supports the use of restitution for the purposes most often ascribed to it. The effective elements of a restitution program will be discussed in part 2 of this essay in the next issue. Thirteen footnotes are listed.