One-third of young offenders in unique initiative re-offend
But a report into the Garda restorative justice programme reveals the vast majority of victims, after meeting those who committed crimes against them, showed a remarkable ability to forgive, with some offering support and many claiming they could see the offender’s point of view. Despite the one-third re-offending rate, gardaí charged with steering children away from crime are said to be largely encouraged by the initiative, set up on a pilot basis from 1999 and on a statutory footing from May last year.
More than 150 young offenders have taken part in restorative justice conferences, the majority of them involving victims. Juvenile liaison officers choose those cases where both victim and offender are likely to benefit.
Most of the individuals involved have committed more serious crimes, one reason for the number of re-offenders at the end of the research period in late 2001. “We would be worried if there wasn’t re-offending because it would look then like we were taking the soft option and picking cases where it is known there is little likelihood of the teenager re-offending,” said one source.
Around 87% of youngsters cautioned under the juvenile liaison programme do not re-offend before their 18th birthday, garda figures reveal. Those involved in the restorative justice programme are more likely to be among the other 13%. The adult re-offending rate varies from between 50 and 70% for those imprisoned for offences such as robbery, burglary or drugs to less than 5% for other offences, such as non-payment of fines.
The radical initiative was set up to tackle the rising tide of juvenile crime, which accounts for 20,000 offences per year, including 1,500 assaults and 3,500 robberies. The Garda’s head of juvenile liaison Superintendent Vincent Maguire said the programme will be extended but that at the moment the force was still on a learning curve. He added there were huge benefits for victims. Victim Support has given its backing to the programme.
A garda source added: “Victims can be reassured, it takes some of the mystery and the fear of the unknown out of it. Victims learn that they have not been personally targeted and are reassured they are unlikely to be a victim again.”
The report revealed that 95% of victims were satisfied after attending a conference, even in serious cases such as assault, larceny and criminal damage. Most of the offenders gave verbal or written apologies, some promised to do work for the victim, while a number compensated the victim for damage caused. More than half were prepared to support an offender, including a case where a business person employed a youngster who had stolen from him and another where a sports club that had suffered criminal damage encouraged the culprits to join.
The report also revealed some of the drama at conferences, attended not just by the offender and victim but also their families, friends and gardaí.
“Showing emotion is particularly powerful in getting offenders to recognise the hurt they have caused.” the report concluded.
