The week of November 15-22 has been designated Restorative Justice Week. For more than 100 years The Salvation Army has been a leader in correctional services and continues to minister in Canada’s county jails and courthouses.
The Salvation Army believes that a restorative approach to justice, which seeks to hold the wrongdoer accountable while working to bring healing and wholeness to the victim, the offender and the community, is a more productive approach for all parties. The goal is to “restore” the relationship, fix the damage that has been done and prevent further crimes from occurring.
When Major Ray Piercey enters the court in Guelph, Ontario, he brings a smile and a sense of hope. As the Diversion Program Coordinator, he meets people who need someone to understand them, and someone who really cares.
Everyday the Crown entrusts to Major Ray people whose crimes would be termed small by most standards, but whose needs are great. It is Ray’s job to see that justice is done, but he will see it is done with a sense of compassion and humanity, qualities often lacking in the impersonal world of the criminal justice system. Ray brings hope.
Given the opportunity to see the major as opposed to having a criminal record brings with it a sense of relief to most. But Ray doesn’t let them off. Today Ray meets Debra. At 21 she is a bright university student who finds herself in a strange new city. She was caught shoplifting at a local mall and although it is a small thing, it has devastated Debra. What she took seemed to make little sense. In her purse she had enough money to buy the item several times over. So why did she do it? What will her friends and family think? What does this mean for her future? It is at this point that Ray goes to work.
Talking to her as one who cares, the major sets out a plan that, if completed, will help Debra avoid a criminal record. She will need to write a letter of apology to the store. She will need to make restitution for what she has taken. She is also required to make a donation to the charity of her choice, thus giving back to the community. And she must take counselling provided by The Salvation Army.
Ray’s plan gives Debra a chance to understand what is happening in her life. By going through these tasks and talking with her, Ray discovers something that the courts would never have found. Debra’s mother is dying of cancer. Her sole parent who sacrificed to send Debra to university has only six months to live. The stress of the situation has put Debra in a fog for months and on the day of her crime, she couldn’t stop crying as she thought about her mother. When she shoplifted, she really doesn’t remember what happened. For the first time, she has been able to unburden herself to someone. And Ray is there. No one has ever prayed with Debra, but Ray does. No one listened to her. But Ray does. No one ever gave Debra any hope. But Ray has.
When Debra leaves the court that day, her crimes are on the way to being resolved. The store will be satisfied, the courts will be satisfied. Debra will have no criminal record if she does as Ray has required. It is Restorative Justice. But what has really been restored is Debra. Debra knows someone cared. She met a Ray of hope.
