Book Review: Restorative Justice: Ideas, Values, Debates
| Published date | 01 June 2002 |
| Date | 01 June 2002 |
| Author | Robin Tuddenham |
| DOI | 10.1177/026455050204900221 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
174
for men in prison to view themselves as
victims. It is only in the conclusion that
the authors highlight the problems related
to the balance of retribution and
punishment with protection of the public.
Susan Ashmore
Probation Officer,
HMP Elmley
Restorative Justice: Ideas, Values,
Debates
Gerry Johnstone
Willan Publishing, 2002;
pp154; £16.99, pbk
ISBN 1-903240-42-5
The growth of influence of restorative
justice in this country is now enshrined in
legislation, with the national launch of
referral orders in April 2002, and has
arguably been an implicit facet of
community interventions since the
introduction of community service in the
early 1970s. Johnstone’s book suggests
that we need to critically interrogate both
restorative justice itself, and those who
seek to implement it, when it can mean
so many different things.
The author argues that restorative
justice is meaningless if it is bolted onto
existing criminal justice approaches, as it
challenges the whole tenet of crime and
justice as it is done now. He states that it
is not just another technique to reduce
offending, as its success factors are also
about community participation and
meeting the needs of victims. The book
provides an accessible overview of these
debates, and the conflicts of interest,
which can produce restorative justice
practices beset with confusion, trying to
be all things to all people. Many of
these criticisms are well founded,
particularly the legitimate concern that
organisations which represent victims are
understandably sceptical of restorative
justice run by criminal justice agencies.
However, one common strand throughout
much of this discussion is an implicit
assumption that there is one best way of
undertaking restorative justice, and that
alternatives are based on distortion and
misconception. It is true that there is an
emerging evidence base indicating some
key pointers for good practice and positive
outcomes, but this evidence derives from
a wide range of work undertaken in vastly
different social and cultural contexts.
Johnstone sees himself as a critical
friend of restorative justice, and he
presents a persuasive check on some of its
more zealous exponents such as Zehr. He
makes it clear to the reader early on that
he is indebted to the seminal work of
Garland on crime control, and that it is his
desire to challenge what Garland aptly
describes as our present regime of
‘punitive segregation’, which is a
motivating factor in writing the book. In
my view, the book is more able to achieve
this when it locates restorative justice in
distinct cultural traditions, and when it
advocates the role of the victim in an
insightful way, which does not brutalise
the offender.
The last chapter of the book
suggesting future ways forward for
restorative justice is already at risk of
being taken over by events, as probation
areas across the country introduce
restorative justice initiatives. These
developments undermine the author’s
view that it could be an approach
restricted to the youth justice system,
where community panels are meeting
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