Book Review: Juvenile Justice Reform and Restorative Justice: Building Theory and Policy From Practice

• Author: Frank Wilson
• DOI: 10.1177/1541204006286321
• Published date: 01 April 2006
• Date: 01 April 2006
• Subject Matter: Articles

10.1177/1541204006286321Youth Violence and Juvenile JusticeBOOK REVIEW

Book Review

Juvenile Justice Reform and Restorative Justice: Building Theory and Policy From Practice,byG.

Bazemore and M. Schiff. Portland, OR: Willan, 2005. 386 pp., $37.50 (paperback).

DOI: 10.1177/1541204006286321

As a graduate student, one is consistently told that research must contribute something unique

to the existent body of literature on the topic. Yet, quite often, students and other academic researchers

find it difficult to identify specific areas in need of exploration. A common solution to this dilemma,

taught often to students, is to examine published research to see what suggestions, if any, are provided

for future research. Unfortunately, these suggested topics often lack direction and theoretical ground-

ing. To date, the literature surrounding juvenile justice reform and restorative justice has been no

different.

Cromwell, Alarid, and del Carmen (2005) recently defined restorative justice as “a sentencing

philosophy and practice that emphasizes the offender taking responsibility to repair the harm done to

the victim and to the surrounding community” (p. 359). Yet, as simplistic as this definition may seem,

it is safe to say that most Americans, if asked, could not provide a definition of restorative justice, let

alone explain what restorative group conferencing is. Further, it would also be safe to say that many

criminal justice policy makers and academicians may also have a difficult time providing such a con-

cise definition as the one provided above. Bazemore and Schiff’s contribution to the literature pro-

vides, in my opinion, one of the best discussions of restorative conferencing programs in print today.

They not only provide a detailed discussion concerning the growth of restorative conferencing pro-

grams in the United States but also capture the broad scope of these programs and variety of such ini-

tiatives. The authors remain true to their effort to provide a broad perspective of conferencing ap-

proaches and point out the values of each. This book provides both novices to the topic of restorative

justice and experts alike with a review of how much the field has grown during the past 30 years and a

discussion of problems those working in the field may face in the future.

Chapter 1 provides a brief history of the restorative justice movement and its complexities. It is

through this discussion that Bazemore and Schiff establish the context in which restorative group

conferencing fits. Key to this chapter and all subsequent chapters is a discussion of how “restorative-

ness” can be measured or evaluated. The authors put forth “three core restorative justice principles as

the framework for a ‘principle-based’ approach to evaluation of restorative justice practice” (pp. 23-

24).

In chapter 2, the authors provide practitioners with a collection of intervention theories that

they believe will assist the practitioner who strives for specific results through restorative

conferencing. They then connect conference outcomes with causal, practical, and grounded theories

of intervention.

Chapter 3 addresses the scope of restorative conferencing and the variety of models being im-

plemented in the United States. Further, the authors explore who these programs are currently serving

and how the programs are distributed geographically. Last, they explore, through a national survey,

how conferencing programs work on a daily basis and whether or not the administrators of such pro-

grams feel they are living up to their restorative goals.

Chapter 4 lays out the research methodology for the authors’ qualitative examination of restor-

ative conferencing programs. The researchers pay specific attention to the ability of practitioners to

remain true to restorative principles through their program vision. The researchers also seek to deter-

mine to what extent program visions and practices adhere to their theoretical roots.

Focusing on the first of Van Ness and Strong’s (1997) three core principles of restorative jus-

tice, chapter 5 explores how participants in the conferencing process view the principle of repairing

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Youth Violence and Juvenile Justice, Vol. 4 No. 2, April 2006 213-214

© 2006 Sage Publications