Restorative Justice model

               I propose a new method to measure success and health of our Justice System. What if the effectiveness of our justice system was measured in number of lives restored? If you haven’t read my sample Timmy and Tommy story in my Problem with current justice employee performance system  section, please do. Let’s say Timmy and Tommy committed the same criminal act and had their day in court. Timmy and Tommy still have to answer for what they did. If there were points handed out for restored lives everyone gets a chance for a point. The arresting officer, the detective, the district attorney, the probation officer, the tax payer, the state or county and the public defender. In this case, the electric bike was returned to the owner. The arresting officer and detective get a point for that. Well let’s give them two points each because there were two offenders. The solution I have isn’t perfect and someone with a bigger mind can make this work. The two offenders go to court, now the District Attorney and Public Defender work together for a solution that hands out the most restorative points for everyone. Let’s say Timmy and Tommy do not get jail time. There’s a point available from the tax payer. There are two offenders to be dealt with. How do they get points from them? Assign them court costs. When the offenders pay their fines in full, the public defender and district attorney get a point each from the state or county. The DA works to get as much money for the court as possible. The PD works to make sure the amount assessed is achievable and fair to the offenders. They may be indigent. Judge will decide. The DA and PD also work out a deterrent punishment so offenders are not likely to offend again. Maybe a small amount of time in jail or community service. Offenders are given probation. Offenders complete probation successfully. Probation mandates offenders must sustain employment or income and pay court costs/probation fees. Failure to do so results in their weekends being spent in county jail.

               The two offenders complete supervision successfully, sustain employment and complete their community service. Now the DA, PD and probation get points for restoring the lives of the offenders. Maybe one of the offenders makes a punishable mistake on supervision such as failing a drug test. Now probation gives the offender a drug treatment requirement. Offender completes treatment program and now probation gets a point for restoring a life. Maybe the offender is difficult to employ. Probation assists offender in job placement programs. There’s a point to them if offender finds work.

               This concept can be applied to police officers as well. An officer can get the same life restored point for getting a drunk person home from a bar safely before they drive or same point if a drunk driver is taken off the road in a DUI arrest. No one was killed by the drunk driver, the drunk driver didn’t crash and that counts as a life restored.

               There are some crimes where a life cannot be truly restored like murder, rape or pedophilia. (Notice I didn’t say sex offender. I have a rant on that on another page HERE.) There are points to be had in those cases. If a murder victim’s body is found, detective gets point for that. If a detective finds the accused rapist didn’t commit the act and the accuser is lying, there is a point for that. If the rapist is caught and convicted, there’s a point for that as the rapist will not harm another.

This point system can be applied to board of pardons and paroles, probation officers, police departments and many other sections of the criminal justice system. We cannot continue our current tough on crime and lock them away approach we have been using. We cannot afford this. Too many salvageable lives are being thrown away.