Restorative Justice and Sexual Assault: Outcome Appraisal Through Textual Analysis

Restorative Justice is a community alternative to criminal justice. Its principles and practices are grounded in harm reduction, consensually-determined reparation, and in many applications, a facilitated conference between an offender and respective victim, and family members and/or community persons impacted by the crime. Projects based on Restorative Justice are rare for sex offenders. In this article, we review one such program funded as a demonstration project. Based on the rubric that we adapted from a template developed by Stephen Webster, we assessed the veracity of apology letters written by adult sex offenders, who earned the right to apologize to their victim, following participation in a 12-month program based on principles and practices of Restorative Justice. Content of the apology letters demonstrated anticipated changes in classic features of sexual assault as a harm-causing, ego-centered, trauma-producing, controlseeking, relationship-imposing act. Despite individualized formulation by each responsible person, the letters from misdemeanor and felony cases were similar in acknowledgment of harm and in the articulation of gratitude, but varied in responsibility acceptance and trauma discontinuation.