Restorative Justice is a community-based alternative to the traditional justice system.  Trained volunteers facilitate Restorative Justice Processes bring together the person(s) harmed, the wrong doer, their families, supporters, and/or the community for a discussion about the incident and how it can be repaired.

The Referral Process

Police officers may choose to refer a young offender to the program as an alternative to filing a criminal charge within the criminal justice system.  This option enables the young offender, if they are accountable for their actions and prepared to repair the harm they have done, to avoid a criminal record and the downward spiral for their future frequently accelerated by entering the criminal justice system.  The Crown Prosecutor may also refer a case (post-charge) to the RRDRJ program if deemed appropriate. Participating local schools may also make a direct referral to the program as a proactive approach to help address high risk situations. Click on the link below to learn more and to access referral forms and consent forms.

Restorative Justice is not an option for everyone

It is an option if:

• All parties are voluntary participants.
• Both the person harmed and person responsible for the harm are willing to participate in a face-to-face meeting.  If in some cases face to face meetings are not possible, video conferencing or written correspondence, or use of a surrogate person(s) harmed (someone who has experienced a similar crime or harmful incident) might be considered if most appropriate.
• The person who has done the harm accepts responsibility, or at least does not deny responsibility for the harm.
• All parties consider it safe to be involved.

When a referral is received by the program

• A confidential case file is initiated.
• The program coordinator reviews the referral and collects additional information as required to determine appropriateness of referral for the Restorative Justice process. This may involve phone calls to the referring individual, the police involved in the case, and other relevant involved parties.
• If the case is deemed appropriate, the coordinator assigns both a primary and support facilitator to the case
• The “primary” facilitator will contact both the person(s) harmed and the wrong doer and complete pre-case conference interviews.
• If following the pre-conference interviews, it is agreed by all parties that they would like to proceed with the restorative conference, a time and location is arranged and additional participants as needed are invited to attend.

What to expect