Course Catalog

JUS230E Restorative Justice (3 credits) 9364

COURSE DESCRIPTION
Restorative justice focuses on repairing the injuries caused by crime - injuries to crime victims, to communities and to offenders. This course will outline a restorative justice process, compare that process to our current criminal justice system, review the biblical basis for restorative justice and describe steps which have been taken to implement restorative justice reforms.

LEARNING RESULTS
The learner will be able to:

• Demonstrate a working knowledge of our society’s traditional approach to criminal justice.
• Demonstrate an understanding of the historic development of our society’s traditional approach to criminal justice.
• Describe the biblical basis of restorative justice.
• Describe the conceptual basis of restorative justice.
• Demonstrate a working understanding of the parties that are directly affected by the criminal justice process.
• Describe the needs and responsibilities of each of the parties involved in the criminal justice process, and how the process should allow them to be met.
• Demonstrate a working understanding of the basic phases of the criminal justice process.
• Describe how a restorative justice process would function, and compare that process to our society’s traditional approach.

REQUIRED TEXTS AND MATERIALS
• Van Ness, Daniel W. and Strong, Karen Heetderks. Restoring Justice, 3rd ed. Anderson, 2006.
• Zehr, Howard. Changing Lenses, Herald Press, 1990.

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INTEGRATION OF FAITH AND LEARNING
As we explore the concept of restorative justice and the process of repairing the injuries done to another, we will examine the biblical concept of restorative justice and compare it to the justice system currently in place.

LEARNING DOCUMENTATION
To determine if the course learning results have been attained, students document their learning by submitting the following items:

Assignment #1 - The Traditional Criminal Justice
Process
Assignment #2 - Historical Development
Assignment #3 - Old Testament
Assignment #4 - New Testament
Assignment #5 - Underlying Principles
Assignment #6 - Needs and Responsibilities of Crime
Victims
Assignment #7 - Needs and Responsibilities of
Offenders
Assignment #8 - Needs and Responsibilities of the
Community
Assignment #9 - The Government
Assignment #10 - Spectrum of Understanding
Restorative Justice
Assignment #11 - Four Phases of the Criminal
Justice Process
Assignment #12 - Program Examples

There are 12 lessons and 3 papers for this course.

LEARNING EVALUATION
In summary, your grade in this course will be based on two criteria.

1. Read all the material and answer the lesson questions at the 85% level. Graded P/F

2. Write three papers. Grade 0 - 100% each. Each paper counts for 1/3 of your total grade.