NCJ Number
195858
Journal
Federal Probation Volume: 66 Issue: 1 Dated: June 2002 Pages: 38-43
Date Published
June 2002
Length
6 pages
Annotation
This study analyzed the effects of conferencing for first-time juvenile offenders in the city and county of Honolulu, Hawaii.
Abstract
In 1999 the Honolulu Police Department received a Federal grant to divert first-time juvenile offenders to restorative conferences rather than traditional police diversion programs. Between March and September 2000, 102 first-time juvenile offenders participated in conferences; 85 conferences were held for the 102 offenders. The conferencing process is only used when the offender admits wrongdoing. Participants in conferences included victims (or victim representatives), offenders, and representatives of the community most affected by crime. Conferences were facilitated by a neutral third party who did not participate in decision making. In the four phases of the conference, offenders admitted what they did, explained their actions, stated their feelings and attitudes since the offense, and indicated whom they thought had been most affected by their actions. Other individuals in the conference discussed how they had been affected by the offender's behavior; the group discussed what could be done to repair the harm; and a written agreement was developed by the group, with all participants signing it. This study measured the effects of conferencing on participant satisfaction, offender agreement compliance, and recidivism. Participant satisfaction with the conferencing process was high for all but a few participants. All of the 85 conferences resulted in agreements. Out of the 102 juvenile offenders, at least 90 complied with the terms of the agreements. The recidivism analysis examined rearrest rates 6 months after the conference. The overall recidivism rate for the juveniles who had conferences was 28 percent. The juveniles who had conferences for nonviolent offenses were less likely to escalate to violent crimes compared to juveniles without conferences. In the group of 102 conferenced juveniles, 59 were initially arrested for nonviolent offenses. Of these, only one was rearrested within the following 6 months for a violent crime. The rearrest rate for all youth in Honolulu was not significantly different from the conferenced juveniles. 5 tables and 29 references