"Restorative Justice is a process to involve, to the extent possible, those who have a stake in a specific offense to collectively identify and address harms, needs, obligations, in order to heal and put things as right as possible.”
Restorative Justice:
Is concerned about needs and roles
Expands the circle of stakeholders
Provides an opportunity for real information
Facilitates truth telling
Empowers those that have been harmed with the ability to identify their own needs
Provides a way for those that have caused harm to be accountable
Encourages personal transformation
Support those who have harmed for integration into the community
Gives attention to the community's need for justice
Creates opportunities for building a sense of community and mutual accountability
Fosters the conditions that promote healthy communities
Restorative Justice:
is not primarily about forgiveness or reconciliation
is not necessarily imply return to past circumstances
is not mediation
is not primarily designed to reduce recidivism or repeat offenses
is not a particular program or a blueprint
is not limited to "minor" offenses or first-time offenders
is not a new or North American development
is neither a panacea nor necessarily a replacement for the legal system
Summarized in parts from The Little Book of Restorative Justice, Howard Zehr (2002)