Deck 9: Restorative Justice Within a Community Policing Framework

Question 1

Restorative justice is a process whereby parties with a stake in a specific offence collectively resolve how to deal with the aftermath of the offence and its implications for the future.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Circle sentencing originally developed in several northern Saskatchewan communities as a collaborative initiative between northern community residents and Saskatchewan justice personnel-primarily RCMP officers.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

Restorative or community justice initiatives in Aboriginal communities are often premised on sections within the Indian Act and may contain aspects of local band policies.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

In one Canadian study examining whether restorative justice approaches could be suitable in addressing serious crimes, it was found that although restorative justice has had some measure of success in less serious crimes the process could not be applied in more serious crimes.

Question 5

Restorative justice is based on the fundamental principle that in order to be effective, efforts to address and resolve the problems created by criminal behaviour must consider the victim, the offender, and the community.

Question 6

Restorative justice programs in Canada:

A) generally exclude the police.
B) have only been developed in the past five years.
C) vary widely in the types of offences and offenders processed.
D) operate primarily as diversion programs.

Question 7

The approach to justice that views crime as a violation of the state and its laws, focuses on establishing guilt, and results in one side winning and the other losing is called:

A) retributive justice.
B) winner-take-all justice.
C) restorative justice.
D) community justice.

Question 8

The restorative justice approach that provides an opportunity for the offender and the victim to express their feelings and concerns with the assistance of a mediator is called:

A) circle sentencing.
B) family group conferencing.
C) crisis counselling.
D) victim-offender mediation.

Question 9

Circle sentencing:

A) originated in the Yukon.
B) involves the community and the justice system.
C) is premised on traditional Aboriginal healing practices.
D) all of the above.

Question 10

The restorative approach that views crime as part of a larger conflict and the sentence as a small part of the solution is called:

A) victim-offender mediation.
B) retributive justice.
C) community circle sentencing.
D) distributive justice.

Question 11

The experience of restorative justice programs in Canada indicates that:

A) these approaches are generally unsuccessful in dealing with serious offences.
B) restorative justice programs can work in rural and urban areas.
C) restorative justice programs work best in rural and remote communities.
D) participation in restorative justice programs has been generally limited to the residents of First Nations.

Question 12

Research studies on restorative justice initiatives in Canada have found that:

A) restorative justice programs are highly successful with young offenders, but less successful with adult offenders.
B) restorative justice programs are most successful when the police are not involved.
C) it is difficult to determine the extent to which restorative justice programs have achieved their objectives, due to a lack of research.
D) circle sentencing is not effective with serious offenders.

Question 13

The effectiveness of restorative justice programs can be undermined by:

A) power and status hierarchies in communities.
B) failing to protect the legal rights of offenders.
C) poor community leadership.
D) all of the above.

Question 14

Extrajudicial measures within the Youth Criminal Justice Act direct police officers to:

A) take no further action.
B) warn the young person.
C) refer the young person to a program, or agency, that may assist him or her to not commit offences.
D) all of the above.

Question 15

The Gladue decision directed the Canadian court system to:

A) provide separate holding cells for individuals arrested by the police that fall within the jurisdiction of the Youth Criminal Justice Act.
B) utilize community conferencing principles when dealing with young persons.
C) take meaningful steps to counter the increasing reliance on incarceration in the sentencing of Aboriginal offenders.
D) utilize victim-offender mediation programs (VOMP) in cases involving domestic violence.

Question 16

Restorative justice can best be defined as:

A) a specific practice
B) a set of principles that provides the basis to respond to crime and social disorder
C) a set of principles that provides the basis to provide equality and fairness
D) the application of the Youth Criminal Justice Act

Question 17

The majority of individuals whose cases have been heard by sentencing circles:

A) have been young offenders
B) have been female offenders
C) have been adult offenders
D) have been offenders involved in drug related issues

Question 18

The Youth Criminal Justice Act (YCJA) emphasizes:

A) prevention and meaningful consequences for youth
B) the use of lock-up facilities for chronic offenders
C) the legal rights of young persons as contained within the Charter
D) the establishment of rehabilitation programs for incarcerated youth

Question 19

One of the concerns associated with the process of restorative and community justice is:

A) the costs may be prohibitive in small communities
B) whether the outcomes are truly effective in reducing crime
C) the slow and tedious nature of achieving results
D) that crime victims may be revictimized

Question 20

Compare retributive justice and restorative justice.

Question 21

Describe how victim-offender mediation programs operate.

Question 22

Describe circle sentencing and then compare it to the adversarial court process.

Question 23

What is community holistic healing and how does this program reflect the principles of restorative justice?

Question 24

Describe the key features of family group conferencing.

Question 25

What is community conferencing?

Question 26

Discuss the use of extrajudicial measures within the Youth Criminal Justice Act.

Question 27

Canadian research suggests that restorative justice approaches have been more successful than traditional, non-restorative approaches in which areas?

Question 28

Discuss the critical issues that exist within the current framework of restorative and community justice.

Question 29

Compare and contrast the community decision-making models of circle sentencing, family group conferencing, and victim-offender mediation.

Question 30

Describe how victim-offender mediation works, including the four phases of mediation. What are the strengths and weaknesses of this approach?

Question 31

List and discuss the restorative justice initiatives that have occurred in Canada's Aboriginal communities. To what degree would these initiatives work in Canada's large urban centers?