Mediation and Criminal Justice: Victims, Offenders and Community

The last decade has seen the growth of mediation as an alternative to existing forms of resolution of the criminal justice process. The rise of mediation has been inspired by varied motives: to give victims better outcomes; to relieve the pressures on the courts; to offer courts new ways of resolving disputes; and to restore justice to the community outside the criminal justice system. To what extent can mediation schemes achieve the aims of their exponents? Wright and Galaway assess the international experiences of mediation in theory and in practice. A team of researchers and practitioners draw together experiences in North America, Western Europe and Japan, and examine the extent to which different forms of mediation have succeeded in their aims. They address key problems such as how far it has extended the reach of the criminal justice system. As a major international assessment of the progress of mediation, this book will be essential reading for researchers and lecturers in criminology, social work and law as well as for all concerned with the rights of victims and offenders and with the criminal justice system. "The articles are consistently well written and provide a great breadth of information about the developments in the field." --The Alternative Newsletter "Although mediation of civil disputes has become a growth industry over the past decade, extending the concept into the criminal field has proved more problematic. This first-of-its-kind collection by a group of well-known scholars and practitioners helps explain why this is so . . . . This volume makes a real contribution to the analysis of criminal justice reform. For upper-level students and faculty members." --Choice "A collection with sufficient detail for anyone interested in mediation." --Times Higher Education Supplement "Wright and Galaway have collected a valuable group of essays relating to the use of mediation in the criminal justice system. . . . The essays are generally excellent. . . . They offer a range of valuable insights into some of the fundamental questions facing the dispute resolution community." --The Alternative Newsletter "Mediation and Criminal Justice, edited by two distinguished criminal justice experts, makes an important contribution: A primary intent of the book is to consider the benefits that can be realized by bringing together victims and offenders who don't know each other, and by emphasizing reparative rather than retributive justice. . . . The book provides a diverse set of perspectives from which to form opinions about the merits and drawbacks of mediation." --Judicature