Evaluation of the Restorative Justice Program
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SARAH NELSON. LANE COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF YOUTH SERVICES, 2001. |
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Comparison Those juveniles who participated in mediation; those referred to program and who agreed to mediation, but did not because the victim refused; and those referred to program but refused mediation |
Variables
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Key Findings
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Description
Study of the effect of mediation on agreement completion and recidivism in Lane County, Oregon.
Method
Examined records of juveniles referred to the program between July 1996 and November 1998. Juveniles with incomplete or missing records and juveniles from out of county were excluded from the study. Compared number of offenses per juvenile before referral to the number of offenses committed per juvenile after referral, then compared those numbers across three groups of juveniles: those who participated, those who refused to participate and those who agreed to participate but who did not because the victim could not or would not participate.
Sample Size
198 total juveniles referred. Once incomplete or missing records were removed, the total sample was 150: 68 who participated in mediation, 44 who agreed to but could not participate, and 38 who refused to participate.
Program Variables
Voluntary program established in 1989 that was available to selected juveniles who accepted responsibility. These juveniles tended to be first- or second-time offenders. Co-mediation model with discussion focused on what happened and what type of restitution was appropriate. Agreements involved community service, restitution, a project, apology, and other actions deemed appropriate.
Full Findings
Of those who participated and reached agreement, 76.8% completed the agreement and 13.4% partially completed it. 9.8% did not complete any of the agreement.
The average number of offenses by all juveniles referred to the program decreased by 64.6% from the year before referral. Juveniles who met with the victim had 80.8% fewer offenses; juveniles who agreed to participate but did not meet with the victim had 65.3% fewer offenses; juveniles who refused mediation had 32.2% fewer offenses.
Juvenile Victim Offender Mediation in Six Oregon Counties
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MARK S. UMBREIT, ROBERT B. COATES, AND BETTY VOS. NATIONAL ORGANIZATION FOR VICTIM ASSISTANCE, JULY 9, 2001.
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Comparison Depends on the county. No random assignment was conducted. In one county, there was no match between groups, which were in different counties. In the others, the same group of offenders was compared one year before mediation and one year after. |
Variables
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Key Findings
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Description
Study of the functioning and impact of victim-offender mediation programs at Community Dispute Resolution Centers in Clackamas, Deschutes, Jackson, Lane, Multnomah, and Polk Counties.
Method
Study took place from October 2000 to May 2001. Conducted interviews with 55 stakeholders (judges, program directors, police officers, juvenile corrections personnel, and volunteers). Interviewed victims and offenders who had participated in mediation since July 1999. Observed some mediations. Examined mediation files. Comparison was done on recidivism in 4 programs - 3 looked at referral rate of juveniles prior to and after mediation, one did a cross-county comparison.
Sample Size
For satisfaction, the sample was 104 victims and 93 offenders. For recidivism: 28 to 251 juveniles who participated in mediation were tracked in each of the four counties.
Program Variables
All programs were voluntary for the victim. One program was mandatory for the offender, others varied from completely voluntary to authorizing the court to order mediation. Three programs conducted mediations at the courthouse, three conducted them elsewhere. All mediations were performed by volunteers without charge to the parties.
Full Findings
The resolution rate was 86% for all programs combined.
89% of victims and 76% of offenders were satisfied with the outcome. 93% of victims and 87% of offenders felt the agreement was fair to the offender, while 86% of offenders and 88% of victims felt it was fair to the victim. 82% of both victims and offenders were satisfied with the justice system.
Recidivism rates showed a decrease of 64.6% - 76.6% in three counties when the number offenses committed by program juveniles during the year after mediation was compared to their offense rate during the year prior to mediation. A cross-county comparison showed a recidivism rate more than 20% lower than in the non-program county (unfortunately, comparison groups were not well matched).
A Summary of the Evaluations of Six California Victim Offender Reconciliation Programs
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AUDREY EVJE AND ROBERT C. CUSHMAN. THE JUDICIAL COUNCIL OF CALIFORNIA, 2000. |
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Comparison Mediated cases and non-mediated cases (some not mediated because victim declined). One county matched cases by specific variables. |
Variables
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Key Findings
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Description
Evaluation of six countywide juvenile victim-offender mediation programs in California to determine if they had achieved the goals set by the state legislature.
Method
A group of juveniles in each program was compared to a comparable group of juveniles that did not go through the program. Each program conducted its own evaluation independently, with slightly different methods (some matched cases, others did not; some compared cases that went to mediation to those that did not because the victim declined mediation while others compared mediated cases to non-mediated cases regardless of the reason). All, however, used analysis of court records and opinion surveys of victims and offenders (right after mediation and six months later).
Sample Size
Sample size varied between 25 and 153, depending on the county.
Program Variables
Voluntary, free programs mediated off-site by volunteers. Referral by various sources. Programs ranged from 1 to more than 10 years in existence at the time of study.
Full Findings
Restitution collected from mediation participants exceeded that collected from the comparison group by more than 40% in 5 of 6 counties. The recidivism rate of mediation participants was at least 10% lower than that of comparison group in 5 of 6 counties. More than 90% of participants in all programs were very satisfied. Completion of the program ranged from 71% to 93%.
Victim-Offender Mediation: An Evaluation of the Pima County Juvenile Court Center's Victim-Offender Mediation Program (VOMP)
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LAURA ROBERTS. SEPTEMBER 1998. |
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Comparison None |
Variables
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Key Findings
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Description
Looked at victim and offender perceptions of mediation as well as restitution and post-mediation recidivism.
Method
Telephone interviews were conducted two weeks after mediations conducted in 1996 and 1997. Court records were examined for recidivism and restitution data.
Sample Size
53 offenders, unknown number of victims
Program Variables
Voluntary program (and considered so by 83% of victims, and 74% of offenders); most crimes were against property. Offenders ranged in age from 10 to 17, with an average of 14.4 years.
Full Findings
Fairness: 97.9% of victims thought the mediation was fair to themselves; 100% thought it was fair to the offender. 100% of offenders thought the mediation was fair to themselves and the victim. Recidivism [defined as: a) a charge within 365 days of either mediation or interview date; b) a non-status offense; c) a non-technical charge]: 20.8% of offenders re-offended. Restitution: FY 1996 total restitution was $7,827.55; FY 1997: $47,949.63.
Cobb County Juvenile Court Mediation Evaluation
SANDRA S. STONE, WILLIAM A. HELMS, AND PAMELA EDGEWORTH. STATE UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA, MARCH 1998.
Description
Study comparing rates of re-offense between juveniles whose cases were mediated and juveniles whose cases were not mediated.
Method
Compared all juveniles whose cases were mediated between April 1993 and June 1996 to a matched sample of juveniles whose cases were handled by traditional methods between 1990 and 1992. Examined juvenile court case records to determine whether the juveniles returned to Cobb County Juvenile Court within a specified period of time. Mediated cases were followed through June 1997 and non-mediated cases through December 1994. Court records also examined time from filing to disposition.
Sample Size
799 juveniles whose cases were mediated and 1,045 non-mediated cases.
Program Variables
Program selected appropriate cases to mediation. These were generally first-time misdemeanors and status cases. Either party could opt out.
Full Findings
On average, the mediated cases took 46.7 days to process, while the non-mediated cases took on average 150 days. 34% (273) of juveniles who participated in mediation had court contact during the follow-up period. Juveniles who did not mediate had a similar recidivism rate – 36.7% (384). Mediation group juveniles most likely to re-offend were those who did not complete the agreement reached in mediation or who did not reach agreement in mediation. There is some evidence that mediators with more than 10 mediations had better success in terms of the juvenile not re-offending. The re-offense rate when the mediator had conducted fewer than 10 mediations was 41%, as compared to 33% for mediators with more than 10 mediations.
The Effect of Victim-Offender Mediation on Severity of Reoffense
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WILLIAM NUGENT AND JEFFREY PADDOCK. MEDIATION QUARTERLY 12(4) 353-367, SUMMER 1995. |
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Comparison A random sample of juveniles who mediated their cases (approximately 65% of all referred cases) after admitting responsibility and a random sample of juveniles who appeared in court and pleaded guilty prior to the inception of the program |
Variables
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Key Findings
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Description
Looked at the impact of mediation on the recidivism rate and severity of reoffense in juvenile cases in Anderson County, TN.
Method
Examined case records. Controlled for family structure, race, age, gender, last grade completed, number of prior offenses, number of siblings. Mediated and non-mediated cases were matched on the type of crime and admission of guilt.
Sample Size
125 of a population of 193 mediated cases; 150 of a population of 448 non-mediated cases
Program Variables
Voluntary, free program. Study looked at cases that were filed from the program’s inception in 1986 through the end of 1988.
Full Findings
The reoffense rate was 19.8% in mediated cases, 33.1% in non-mediated cases. Level 3 (most severe) reoffenses were committed by 5.4% of offenders who participated in mediation, 3.8% of offenders who did not.
Two Types of Juvenile Restitution Programs in Two Midwestern Counties: A Comparative Study
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SUDIPTO ROY. FEDERAL PROBATION 57(4): 48-53, DECEMBER 1993. |
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Comparison Random samples of cases participating in post-adjudication mediation in Indiana and in pre-adjudication diversion program in Michigan |
Variables
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Key Findings
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Description
Examined the impact of post-adjudication mediation and pre-adjudication diversion programs on restitution and recidivism.
Method
Files were examined for cases filed during a two-year period (January 1987 to December 1988) and data was collected on randomly selected juveniles in Indiana and Michigan.
Sample Size
114 juveniles who participated in mediation; 109 juveniles who participated in a diversion program (equal to 50% of participants)
Program Variables
Voluntary program
Full Findings
The recidivism rate after two years in the mediation program in Indiana was 28.7%. In the pre-adjudication program in Michigan it was 27.05%. The restitution rate was 76% in Indiana and 78% in Michigan. The programs were less effective for repeat offenders.
Victim Offender Mediation: An Analysis of Programs in Four States of the US
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MARK S. UMBREIT AND ROBERT B. COATES. CITIZENS COUNCIL MEDIATION SERVICES, 1992. |
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Comparison Those who participated in mediation, those who were referred but did not participate, and those who were not referred |
Variables
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Key Findings
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Description
Comparison study of mediation programs in Albuquerque, Minneapolis, Oakland, and Austin.
Method
Conducted interviews of victims and offenders within a week before mediation and then approximately 2 months after the mediation. Comparison group interviews took place about 2 months after the case disposition date. Also examined case docket information.
Sample Size
948 individuals: 531 who participated in mediation and 417 in the two comparison groups
Program Variables
Voluntary program mediated by volunteers and staff without charge to the parties. Mediators had at least 20-25 hours of training.
Full Findings
Participants were overall satisfied with the process and the outcome. Restitution completion was greater for mediated cases (ranging from 77% to 93% for mediated cases and 55% to 69% for those not referred) and recidivism was lower (ranging between 13% and 22% for participants compared to a range of 19% to 34% for those not referred to mediation).