NCJ Number
159121
Journal
EuroCriminology Volume: 8-9 Dated: special issue (1995) Pages: 199-214
Date Published
1995
Length
16 pages
Annotation
This research project dealt with the relationship between restitution and punishment, with restitution viewed as a social reaction and possible alternative to criminal law rather than as a further criminal sanction.
Abstract
The project assumed that restitution was an accepted and commonly used method to cope with conflicts in the real world, including criminal offenses, and that restitutive forms of equity had relatively high priority in the public's mind. Restitution was therefore defined as an alternative to criminal law sanctions. A mail interview was employed to evaluate attitudes toward restitution in Hamburg, Germany, and the research project was initiated in 1984. The citizen survey was based on a random sample of Germans over 17 years of age that was taken from the Hamburg central residents register, and 1,799 usable questionnaires were returned. It was found that women and elderly persons felt more unsafe than men, whereas younger men felt the safest of all. Three of five respondents believed mediation could lead to a satisfactory form of restitution. In hypothetical crime cases, nearly 3 of 4 respondents chose pure restitution (73.6 percent), while only 9.7 percent favored pure punishment. Certain factors helped identify restitutive and punitive patterns in participant attitudes that related to the nature of the offense, e.g., serious crimes against property, violent crimes, and petty offenses. Most victims were willing to disregard punishment of the offender if he or she was ready to make restitution. On the whole, restitutive and punitive attitudes were consistent in that they did not depend on respondent personal and social characteristics. The need of society to punish offenders versus accept restitution as a suitable alternative sanction is discussed. 11 footnotes and 1 table