WINNER OF DORSET JUSTICE AWARD 2008 FOR PARTNERSHIP
WORKING:
DORSET’S GROUND BREAKING RESTORATIVE REPRIMANDS MEAN AN
INCREASE IN VICTIM FOCUS FOR SOME LOW LEVEL CRIMES COMMITTED BY 10
TO 17 YEAR OLDS
Restorative Reprimands - a new and innovative approach by Dorset
Police and the Dorset Youth Offending Team to dealing with certain
minor crimes committed to 10-17 year olds - are putting victims at
the heart of the process of resolving their crime and helping to
meet the aim of reducing the number of first time entrants to the
youth justice system.
Restorative Reprimands can be used in place of
reprimands (which are issued by a police sergeant after a young
first-time offender has been arrested or taken into custody).
Restorative Reprimands mean that, for the first time, low level
crimes committed by 10 to 17 year old offenders in Dorset are being
dealt with using Restorative Justice. Each Restorative Reprimand
puts the victims at the forefront of the process and involves them
throughout. This also means that the young person committing this
type of minor crime must face up to the consequences of their
actions while not receiving a criminal record.
The policing area of Dorset County Division,
which covers Christchurch, East Dorset, North Dorset, Purbeck, West
Dorset and Weymouth & Portland, is piloting the Restorative
Reprimand project. And, to date, the pilot is proving a success and
was awarded with a the 2008 Dorset Justice Award for partnership
working. Since May 2008, 97 Dorset County Division police
constables and police community support officers have been trained
to deliver Restorative Reprimands. They have carried out 96 of
these Restorative Reprimands and more than 98% of the victims were
satisfied with how Dorset Police dealt with the incident. More than
96% of these victims said the conference helped them to deal with
what had happened. In the first six months of this operational year
(2008/09) there has also been a 44% reduction in the number of
first time entrants to the youth justice system, compared to the
same period last year.
Feedback has been outstanding from victims,
offenders, parents and police officers alike.
In one case, after an hour-long Restorative
Justice Conference (where a Restorative Reprimand is delivered)
which heard how a 12-year-old boy threw a stone that damaged a
carriage on the scenic Swanage Railway, one of the victims
commented: “This is a far better way to deal with such crimes than
a simple reprimand or even juvenile court.”
The volunteer who was in the carriage at the
time the window was smashed said: “A very interesting process that
I trust will be used frequently to help young people understand the
consequences of their actions.”
Following the same conference, the boy’s
mother said: “I was very nervous and anxious about this evening and
how it would be conducted. I was pleasantly surprised how calm and
productive the meeting was.”
And from the young offender: “I realise now
how much damage I’ve done and I will encourage my friends not to do
what I’ve done.”
This was the first conference that
PC Dermot Shanahan of
Swanage Police had attended. He is not trained to deliver
Restorative Reprimands but attended the conference as the
investigating officer in the case. He said: “I was really impressed
with the positive attitude that everyone displayed. This is a
really powerful tool for the police.”
Chief Superintendent Lynn Hart, Divisional
Commander of Dorset County Division, said: “Restorative Reprimands
give police officers another choice in how to deal with young
people committing very minor crimes, that are generally the result
of childhood naivety and inexperience rather than any criminal
mastermind, for example a fight in a playground, throwing stones
that damage property or stealing sweets from a shop.
“Prior to our introduction of Restorative
Reprimands our officers voiced concerns that they had no choice but
to deal with these crimes disproportionately – in a way that left a
young person with a criminal record that they would have to
disclose to employers for some time. Now, the young offender is
involved in a tougher process – in which they literally must face
up to their behaviour and the people affected and, often, make a
commitment to put things right – but not adversely affecting their
future with a criminal record – they get a second chance.
“First and foremost, however, we have
introduced this new way of working in order to respond better to
victims. As far as victims of these low level crimes are concerned,
their confidence in us as a police service depends on how we have
dealt with their crimes and kept them informed of and involved in
the process. Restorative Reprimands mean they are involved in
deciding how the crime is dealt with and they get the chance to
tell the offender how they were affected by the crime and, perhaps,
make suggestions as to what the offender can do to put matters
right.”