Alternative CJS Sentencing and Corrections Policies

1. Circle Sentencing by Judge Barry D. Stuart2. Victim-Offender Reconciliation Project3. Canadian Native Justice Committees4. Satisfying Justice: Safe Community Options5. Supreme Court of Canada – “reorientation”

in sentencing policy6. Youth Justice Act

Crime is only part of a larger conflict

Sentence is only part of the solution

Focus is on present and future conduct

Holistic view of behaviour

Social conflictProcess shapes the

relationship among all parties

Also known as VORP, 1974Initiated in the Kitchener,

Ontario probation department and Mennonite Central Committee almost by chance

Two young men went to houses and businesses to apologize and offer to pay for damages.

Today over 200 jurisdictions offer VORPIt offers a person who has been harmed a

chance to meet with the person responsible for the harm.

A mediator, often volunteer from community, arranges the meeting.

The intent is to help those involved heal, reconcile, and maybe even bring closure to the events.

Acting as advisory bodies, 1996Mandate is to recommend appropriate

punishments for offenders to a judgeNot real restorative alternative

Canadian Correctional Service funded the Church Council on Justice and Corrections’ conference and compilation of restorative programs in Canada, 2000

Listing of community-based responses to crime

“It is our hope that an emerging experience of satisfying justice, as symbolized through the wholeness of circle, will steadily gain ground over the bars of imprisonment.” by John Edwards, Commissioner, Correctional Service of Canada

Supreme Court of Canada – “reorientation” in sentencing policy by R. v. Gladue, 1999

Criminal Code s. 718.2(e) on sentencing of aboriginal people

Parliament’s choice to include (e) and (f) [i.e. to provide reparations for harm done to victims or to the community; and to promote a sense of responsibility in offenders, and acknowledgment of the harm done to victims and to the community.] alongside the traditional sentencing goals must be understood as evidencing an intention to expand the parameters of the sentencing analysis for all offenders. 

The principle of restraint expressed in s. 718.2(e) will necessarily be informed by this re‑orientation.

Bill C-7, the Youth Criminal Justice Act (YCJA), 2002Replaces the Young Offenders Act (YOA) as of April 1,

2003Highlights include:

Communities and families should work in partnership with others to prevent youth crime by addressing its underlying causes, responding to the needs of young persons and providing guidance and support.

The youth justice system should take account of the interests of victims and ensure accountability through meaningful consequences and rehabilitation and reintegration.

The youth justice system should reserve its most serious interventions for the most serious crimes and reduce the over-reliance on incarceration.

1. Griffiths, Curt T.. Canadian Criminal Justice: A Primer. Toronto: Nelson, 2007: 275-276

2. Sullivan, Dennis, and Larry Tifft. Restorative Justice: Healing the Foundations of Our Everyday Lives. Monsey: Willow Tree Pr, 2001: 71-75

3. Nielsen, M.O. A comparison of developmental ideologies: Navajo Nation Peacemaker Courts and Canadian Native Justice Committees. In B. Galaway & J. Hudson (Eds.), Restorative justice: International perspectives (pp. 207-223). Monsey, NY: Criminal Justice Press.

4. "Satisfying Justice (a Compendium of Initiatives, Programs and Legislative Measures) - Publications - Correctional Service of Canada." Correctional Service of Canada Welcome Page | Service correctionnel du Canada Page d'accueil. 1 July 1996. 26 Mar. 2008 <http://www.csc-scc.gc.ca/text/pblct/stisfy/index-eng.shtml>.

5. "Supreme Court of Canada - Decisions - R. v. Gladue." Supreme Court of Canada - Decisions - . 23 Apr. 1999. 26 Mar. 2008 <http://scc.lexum.umontreal.ca/en/1999/1999rcs1-688/1999rcs1-688.html>. "Bill C-3: The Youth Criminal Justice Act (LS-356E)." Parliament of Canada - Parlement du Canada. 21 Feb. 2000. 26 Mar. 2008 <http://www.parl.gc.ca/36/2/parlbus/chambus/house/bills/summaries/c3-e.htm>.

6. "Bill C-3: The Youth Criminal Justice Act (LS-356E)." Parliament of Canada - Parlement du Canada. 21 Feb. 2000. 26 Mar. 2008 <http://www.parl.gc.ca/36/2/parlbus/chambus/house/bills/summaries/c3-e.htm>.