Plans for criminals to meet victims before release

RADICAL plans for criminals to meet their victims before being released from jail were welcomed last night by prison reform supporters.

Officials from the judiciary, probation service, the Director of Public Prosecutions and a senior garda, recommended that prisoners meet those affected by their crime in a bid to stop them re-offending.

Gardaí already run restorative programmes for offending teenagers nationwide where mediation is held between youths and victims.

An interim report by the National Commission on Restorative Justice yesterday suggested piloting projects for adult inmates at a pre-release stage.

The proposal, handed to Justice Minister Dermot Ahern, had proved successful internationally, said the Irish Penal Reform Trust.

“Prisons traditionally operate on a Victorian code, where the governor has all the authority,” the trust’s director Liam Herrick said.

“In Australia, this has been used for serious crimes like those in jail for homicide. The victim feels it’s easier to get closure from the event and understand why the crime took place. The offender also sees the damage done,” he added.

The commission suggested piloting the restorative scheme with 12 inmates. But it also warned about preventing victims from being further hurt when meeting offenders.

Receiving the report, Mr Ahern said: “We must optimise all our policies and resources in the unrelenting fight against crime so that the citizen is protected, the offender is helped to rehabilitate and the best mix of policies are implemented.”

The report also criticised a lack of linked-up data about offenders, from the moment they went into court, through their sentencing, and on to when they left prison. Pooling information garnered from gardaí, the courts and other relevant areas was essential to developing restorative justice systems in Ireland, said the commission.

It proposed piloting two restorative projects as part of the Adult Cautioning Scheme, including mediation between offenders and their victims, in Nenagh, Co Tipperary and Tallaght, Co Dublin.

It also proposed a restorative adult scheme in an inner city area, especially with the possible introduction of community courts.

New laws are not necessarily required for restorative justice to be used nationwide in the rehabilitation of offenders, the commission said.

The commission has met justice policy makers from Australia, Canada, the US and Belgium since it began its work in August last year.

Commission chairwoman Judge Mary Martin said she expected her final report to be finished in mid-2009.