News In Focus
8 February 2007
Restorative justice works, says report
A report studying the effects of restorative justice has concluded that violent criminals are less likely to reoffend if they meet their victims.
As reported in today's Scotsman, the release of the report, published by the Esme Fairbairn Foundation, has sparked controversy because the Scottish Executive has refused funding for the charity SACRO to expand its scheme, claiming there is insufficient evidence that it works.
The SACRO programme involves victims and offenders meeting under the supervision of trained facilitators. Both sides have the chance to speak about the incident and its subsequent impact. The technique is not used for sex offences.
SACRO said it would continue to set up such events, but that it could not facilitate that many because of costs.
The report found that meeting victims made the most impression on adult offenders. It also had a positive effect on victims, in that it reduced the effects of stress related to the crime and cut related health costs.
Professor Lawrence Sherman of Cambridge University, who led the research, said that it showed that face-to-face meetings elicited strong feelings of shame and remorse in an offender and led to genuine apologies.
A spokesperson for the Scottish Executive said that studies on the effects of restorative justice were still in their infancy and the Executive urged caution in applying the report.