Two Restitution Programs - Similarities and Differences

• NCJ Number: 73001
• Author(s): S M Hunt
• Date Published: 1980
• Length: 13 pages
• Sale Source: National Institute of Justice/
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: Paper presented at Fourth Symposium on Restitution and Community Service Sentencing, Minneapolis, Minnesota, September 24-26, 1980

Annotation

The application of the restitution concept in two criminal justice projects in Orleans Parish, La., is discussed, with emphasis on the effects of social, economic, and political factors on each project.

Abstract

The Orleans Parish Criminal Sheriff's Adult Restitution Program, which has been operational since 1977, provides diagnostic intake functions, job development and placement, education, counseling, and security for adult offenders. The Orleans Parish Juvenile Court Juvenile Restitution Program, operational since 1978, provides screening functions, job development and placement, counseling, and teaching services to juvenile offenders. While both programs share common goals of victim compensation, offender rehabilitation, deinstitutionalization, and improving confidence in the criminal justice system, each emphasizes different aspects of the problem. However, both appear to be more offender-oriented than victim-oriented regarding services. The adult program is located in a renovated elementary school. All counseling and education occurs at the school in the evening after participants have returned from work. Participants' paychecks are collected by the staff and deposited into individual accounts, from which restitution payments are deducted. Most participants are accepted with only a few months of their sentences remaining. Assignment to the juvenile program is imposed in lieu of incarceration as a condition of probation. The program relies on the subsidized employment of participants at community service placement sites. Restitution payments are based on the number of hours worked per week and the amount of restitution due. However, the 6.5 percent unemployment rate in New Orleans in 1979 affected the employment potential of participants. Additional problems included the lack of support from local judges in making referrals. During 1978 through 1979, the adult program accepted 363 participants, and the successful completion rate was 58 percent. The juvenile program accepted 140 youths, and the completion rate was 57 percent. Although both programs appear to be gaining momentum, they still utilize the restitution concept below its maximum potential. Three references and two organizational charts are included.