Support Development and Implementation of Victim Awareness Programs
Summary
An effective, restorative criminal justice system must include victim awareness programs. Efforts to heal and restore victims and to rehabilitate those who have harmed them are inextricably connected. Victim awareness programs can serve the goals of restorative justice by bring healing to the victims of crime, offering rehabilitation and re-integration to those convicted of crimes, and restoring safety to a society destabilized by crime.
Conference Position
The Conference supports the development and implementation of victim awareness programs. These programs are essential to the rehabilitation of offenders and can also promote healing for those who have been victimized.
Rationale
Our criminal justice system must be committed to a restoration to wholeness for crime victims, offenders and society. It is essential to the safety of society that offenders be given every opportunity to restore themselves and re-integrate themselves as productive, law abiding members of the community. Protecting public safety requires upholding the sanctity and dignity of every human life. Crime victims not only suffer physical assaults, but also assaults to their human dignity. Offenders who are involved in victim awareness programs are often sensitized to the suffering their actions have caused. They can come to view their victims as human beings worthy of dignity and respect. Victims of crime can be comforted and healed by being involved in a process that recognizes the harm they have been caused. Unfortunately, the criminal justice system frequently does not adequately focus on the victims of crime. Victim awareness programs can help address this shortcoming. Many individuals who commit crimes have also experienced considerable hurt. Putting them in touch with the hurt they caused can be essential to the rehabilitative process. A lot of attention has been paid to getting actual victims together with those who have harmed them and this has been beneficial in some instances to both parties. There is also benefit to be gained from getting victims together with offenders unrelated to their victimization to help bring about a better understanding of the nature and consequences of criminal behavior. Programs that utilize surrogates are often less threatening and can more clearly identify underlying issues.
Punishment is an appropriate response to criminal conduct, but it is not sufficient in and of itself. Restoring both victims and offenders to wholeness requires a more comprehensive approach that leads to increased understanding. The goal of victim awareness programs cannot be avoidance of consequences, but rather, an enhanced understanding of the consequences of one’s actions.
You can download this document, Victim Awareness Programs, in PDF form.
