Analyzing Cheryl Mahaffy's Article 'Face To Face'

IDC 4U1
Mrs. Robinson
Alex Nikolic
04/12/2013
The article Face to Face by Cheryl Mahaffy focuses on restorative justice emphasizing that it focuses on repairing wrong­doing harms rather than meting out punishment. Restorative
Justice is an apparoach to justice that focuses on the needs and morals of the victims rather than a criminal legal punishment. Offenders take an active role in aiding with the harm they’ve done to the victim who would also be involved in the case. Offenders would participate in many different ways of repairing their wrong­doing such as participating in community service or classes, apologizing and meeting with all those affected in the crime. The concept of restorative justice comes from the theory of justice which suggests that crime is an action which is harmful
to the person and the community rather than the state. With first hand accounts from victims and perpetrators, the article demonstrates different cases in which the use of restorative justice was a better approach for both parties rather than a criminal punishment in a detention center.
Restorative justice is only available to first time offender which really defends the concept of
“everyone makes mistakes”.
The articles attempts to present the thesis that restorative justice focuses on repairing wrongdoing’s harm rather than meting out punishment. The these which supports the use of restorative justice in today’s society. “Our criminal justice system current approach doesn’t address the impact of crime and the harm it causes to victim and communities. An offender may be punished and successfully complete his sentence but this doesn’t necessarily meet victim

needs, repair the harm done or increase the public’s sense or safety or satisfacion with the criminal justice system…. Restorative justice aims to repair and heal the harm caused by crime.
The victim and the offender, along with their supports, and community members, impacted by the crime, come together to join in a dialogue process.” (Mahaffy, 2012, 1). The explanation of the justice system in todays society is briefly explained. The article instantly showed a stance of supporting the use of restorative justice in our society. “It’s hard to face your victim and
say you’re sorry” (Mahaffy, 2012, 2). In the restorative justice system, meeting and apologizing to the victim is a major part of the process. This has been proven to have the greatest satisfaction rate between both the victim and the offender. “As a philosophy, Restorative Justice owes much to ancient cultures, including Aboriginals who see wrongdoing as a community’s opportunity to help a person reflect on mistakes and learn” (Mahaffy, 2012, 2).
This statement supports the fact that restorative justice is not a way to help and punish a single individual, whereas in the restorative justice system, the aim to ameliorate the entire community.
I managed to connect this article to a few different contents of the course. The article indirectly connected to deposits in Covey’s “Personal Bank Account”. The term “Personal Bank
Account (PBA)” which is in a way a savings account for yourself in which you can make deposits or withdrawals. The restorative justice method would be a deposit into ones PBA after a major withdrawal which would be the mistake of committing an offence. It would be a deposit as it would make them feel more remorseful toward the victim and have them understanding their actions in a clearer form. The article also made me think of the article “Drop Outs or Left
Outs” in which a law was imposed that no one could receive their drivers license without a secondary school diploma. This is opposing restorative justice as it is not giving the person
any

choice or real benefit in the long run, it is comparable to a court ruling of time in a detention center. The article “Youth Victimization and Violence” can also be related to this article. Since young offenders are largely dealt with in a restorative manner, this article was a clear connection since youth who have been victimized in the past have not been compensated emotionally for their pain which can lead to a reason for why they have turned out in such a poor way. For the project management assignment, my group is researching the effects of irresponsible driving.
Due to the fact that consequences are so large financially mainly, many people have re­offended after drinking, texting or calling while driving. Now the province of Ontario has given many people the opportunity to be sentenced to attending sessions, classes and presentations on their offence which gives them the oppurtunity to be restored into society with a clean plate and a new mindset rather than just being charged a few hundred dollars or a few weeks in jail.
I was able to find many connections between the article and my placement class.
Restorative justice was used when a student was rude and picking on another student. They were not immediately sent to the office and handed a suspension, they were forced to apologize and write a letter to the other person describing how their actions may have hurt the other student.
The article also speaks of the opposite of restorative justice, which would be in a way a strict punishment which as the article argues, is a much worse approach. I have also witnessed this in my placement class. While a student was being rude and disruptive at the beginning of class, the teacher sent him out into the hall to “think about what he did wrong”. I noticed that when the student returned to class after the punishment was over, he carried on with his mischievous actions. Restorative Justice is a useful form of protecting and ameliorating today’s society.

Studies conducted have shown a the greatest results from victim satisfaction to offender accountaility. Dialogue between offenders and victims have proven to be extremely helpful for both parties in the long run. The article used different viewpoints in re­telling victims and offenders’ stories wuth a powerful affect on the way our justice system works. While the article also states that restorative justice may not be in the interest of the victim at first, it has proven to lead to becoming the most sufficient level of satisfaction for the victim in the long run.
Restorative justice cases also end up costing a lot less than cases which end with victims in prison due to high costs to run these facilities. After countless studies, tests and mathematical equations, the choice for the good of society is simple and it lies in restoring offenders back into society rather than keeping them isolated.