By living in the community with the boys we work with, we’re
able to hold them to high standards not only during 5/8 Club meetings but also
in the neighborhood. Two days after our
Summer Program ended, I got a call from someone who said his neighbor’s bike
was stolen, and he had reason to believe some of the 5/8 boys were the ones who
took it. A little investigating
confirmed that some of the boys had it, and shortly thereafter they actually
showed up at our house with it, wanting to pump up the tires. We called the bike’s owners, whom we knew
(and who knew some of the boys), and they came and retrieved the bike.
From here, this situation could have gone in a number of
directions. The victims could have filed
a police report, charges could have been pressed, and the boys could have ended
up in court. Or, satisfied that the bike
was recovered, the victims could have gone home and let the kids’ parents take
it from there, most likely punitively.
Fortunately, the victims chose to pursue a restorative process, one
which I’m trained in from my days working for Restorative Community Foundation.
Our traditional justice system is adversarial, pitting the
state against the offender (with little role for the victim), and punishment is
meted out with little regard for the victim, offender, or community’s
needs. The beauty of the restorative
process is that it is collaborative, inclusive, and affirms the value of both
victim and offender. We spoke to the
boys involved and their parents, and invited them all to attend a conference with
the family whose bike was stolen. We
also had a few community members there who knew everyone in the room and were
involved in the recovery of the bike. As
facilitator, I was neutral.
After explaining the rules of the circle and having everyone
introduce themselves, I asked the bike owners what happened. I then asked the boys what happened (they
freely admitted to taking the bike), and asked the community members if they
had anything to add. I then asked
everyone how it made them feel. The bike
owners’ feelings ranged from confused to upset; the son explained that the bike
is how he gets to practice. One of the
boys said he was scared. The parents and
community members expressed disappointment and embarrassment. Next, I asked the victims about their needs
and how it could be made right. The
mother wanted an apology. A parent
suggested the boys do manual labor at the victims’ house or for Abundant Life. One by one, each boy offered an apology
without coercion, and the victims expressed their gratitude. Everyone agreed that the boys would do some
labor at the victims’ house as restitution.
The difference in expressions on everyone’s face from
Thursday afternoon, when the bike was stolen, and even from that morning when
everyone arrived for the conference, was stark.
Anxiety, anger, and heavy hearts were replaced by smiles and sighs of
relief. Everyone seemed pleased with the
outcome, and peace, justice, and dignity were restored.
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