Law and Practice of Victim/Offender Agreements (From Mediation and Criminal Justice: Victims, Offenders and Community, P 152-177, 1989, Martin Wright and Burt Galaway, eds. -- See NCJ-118327)

• NCJ Number: 118338
• Author(s): F Dunkel; D Rossner
• Date Published: 1989
• Length: 26 pages
• Sale Source: Sage Publications Ltd
• Publication Type: Program/Project Description
• Language: English
• Country: United Kingdom

Annotation

This chapter examines the scope for victim/offender mediation under existing criminal law; opportunities within justice-based social services; and examples of active projects in the Federal Republic of Germany, Austria, and Switzerland.

Abstract

The existing West German Penal Code emphasizes that when sentencing, the offender's efforts to make good the damage and "to reach an agreement with the injured party" are expressly relevant in selecting the type and amount of the sanctions imposed. Thus, the principles of reparation and victim/offender mediation are already inherent in current criminal law, especially in West Germany. In West Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, prosecutorial discretion permits the diversion of cases involving petty offenses to informal processing such as mediation. Also, presentencing efforts by offenders to make good the damage incurred by the offense can serve to reduce the court's sentence in all three countries. Opportunities for victim/offender mediation and reparation in the prison context pertain to evidences of good behavior and the fulfillment of parole conditions. 30 notes, 78 references.