Restorative justice gives hope, Earle says
___By Ken Camp
___Texas Baptist Communications
___AUSTIN--Restorative justice offers something neither retribution nor rehabilitation can give. It rebuilds community, according to Travis County District Attorney Ronnie Earle.
___"Restorative justice uses opportunities created by crime to solve problems that led to the crime in the first place, reweaving the fabric of community," said Earle, who has served 24 years as district attorney in Austin.
| |
DAMON HOLLINGSWORTH of Spicewood, regional director for Texas Baptist Men, prays outside the Texas Capitol with Johnny White, assistant case manager coordinator with the Federal Bureau of Prisons in Beaumont, during a recent prayerwalk at the Capitol. The prayerwalk, coordinated by Texas WMU, was scheduled in conjunction with the annual Restorative Justice Ministry convention. (Photo by Ken Camp/BGCT)
|
___The veteran prosecutor brought the keynote address at a "Peacemaking Through Community" banquet, held as part of the eighth annual Restorative Justice Ministry Convention.
___The convention, May 4-5 in Austin, was co-sponsored by the Baptist General Convention of Texas, the Texas Conference of the United Methodist Church, the Episcopal Diocese of Texas and the Catholic Diocese of Beaumont.
___Earle commended Christians who minister to people in the criminal justice system for refocusing on restorative justice.
___"We've been told we have two choices. One is to build more prisons, lock 'em up, and throw away the key. The other is to offer more treatment--give them an apple and a kiss on the cheek," Earle said.
___Restorative justice offers a third alternative that supports the victim, holds the offender responsible and protects the community, he said.
___"Restorative justice is what the people want. That makes it good politics. It's what the country needs. That makes it good government. And it's what the future holds," Earle said.
___The problem with the conventional criminal justice system is that its focus is the offender, he said. The system is consumed with discovering which law was broken, who committed the crime and how the offender should be punished.
___Restorative justice, on the other hand, asks what harm was inflicted, what needs to be done to repair the harm and who is responsible for bringing about the repair.
___"Efforts to improve the criminal justice system without addressing improvements in the community are like building a house on sand. Restorative justice builds the house on rock," Earle said.
___Innovative restorative justice programs such as victim/offender mediation panels and circle sentencing help to restore the power that comes from a genuine sense of community, he said.
___Both of those approaches involve the victims and their support groups, along with the offenders and representatives of "the system." They also fill the need for "up close and personal accountability," he added.
___"Power is not in the criminal justice system. Power is in community and in relationships," Earle said. "Community is a network of relationships that share joy and pain. And if the relationships are healthy, they also share power."
___Christians and other concerned citizens should demand "a place at the table" on local community justice councils, Earle said. They should require law enforcement and social service agencies to learn how to work together to address crime prevention.
___"Being tough on crime is easy. What's hard is being smart on crime. The community must take responsibility for the precursors of crime," Earle said. "Child abuse is the cradle of crime. Stop it there, and you stop the assembly line."
___
The Baptist Standard
News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.
Contents/ Masthead / Why We're Here / Links / Archive / E-mail us/ SUBSCRIBE!
|