Restorative Justice: Critical Issues

by Eugene McLaughlin (Editor), Ross Fergusson (Editor), Gordon Hughes (Editor)

′The book embodies a timely collection of restorative justice topics and is well structured with some of the most learned authorities in the field′ - Magistrate ′The team which teaches the Open University′s Crime Order and Social Control course has long been publishing teaching materials which are gratefully purloined by colleagues elsewhere for use in their own courses. In producing this book they have gone much further than not only have they selected an indispensable range of mainly previously published readings, they have also placed them in a theoretical context and succinctly summarised the debates which are taking place and some which need to take place but as yet are in their infancy′ - Vista Restorative Justice brings together key international writings that trace the development of restorative justice from its diverse beginnings to current global policies and practices. The collection is constructed around the following theoretical origins of restorative justice; the key principles and substantive practices associated with restorative justice; controversial issues and debates; and future directions and possibilities. A substantial editorial introduction will provide readers with an authorative guide to the critical issues facing restorative justice at the beginning of the 21st century.

238 pages, Paperback

First published May 13, 2003

Reviews

[Emilie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A helpful introduction to the concepts and practice of restorative justice (as at the turn of the 21st century). I found it useful both in its overview, and in the critical perspectives it offered (especially concerning the usefulness of restorative justice approaches for female offenders, and in respect of crimes with predominantly female victims, including domestic violence- critiques which are linked to the more general risk that in seeking “restoration”, restorative justice may reinforce social norms that harm, disadvantage or exclude some people, or groups of people, within society). The early essays, in particular, focus on the way that the existing criminal justice system disempowers or overlooks victims of crime, and the ways in which restorative justice can shift the balance. This was an insight I found especially helpful, both in changing what I imagined to be the focus of restorative justice (I’d encountered it primarily as a way of managing offenders, not so much empowering victims) and in providing a lens through which to see and evaluate current practice in criminal justice more generally.