Restorative Justice - An Alternative to Jail time

The owner of her self-named law firm in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Michelle MacDonald also served 20-plus years in the state courts. From her offices in Minnesota, Michelle MacDonald puts into action the concept of restorative justice.

Restorative justice is an attempt to correct the problems of mass incarceration, under which 2.2 million Americans are in jail and another five million are on probation or parole. The system is based on retributive justice, which assumes that punishing people prevents them from committing more crimes. Many experts argue that instead, imprisonment actually promotes violent crime.

By contrast, restorative justice emphasizes personal and community accountability by making amends for harm done. Its intention is to restore broken relationships.

The process involves facilitated meetings between victims and wrongdoers. A guided discussion allows victims to explain how they were harmed and encourages perpetrators to accept responsibility for their actions and repair the damage to the extent possible.

Restorative justice works. When it has been used in prisons, the rate of repeat offenses has dropped. In schools it has proven to be a low-cost way of decreasing the incidence of suspensions and bullying. One teacher felt that retributive justice destroyed relationships, while restorative justice nurtured them. 

Or, as one advocate puts it, “if crime hurts, then justice should heal.”