Vermont has become a nationally recognized leader in the development of community-based restorative justice and services to victims. The goals of restorative justice approaches are to give affected parties an active voice and role in the process of justice, for those responsible for harm to take responsibility, understand the harm they have caused, make amends, and build or restore relationships in communities that may prevent future harm. Community-based restorative justice processes include not only those directly involved or impacted by crime but also community members who are invested in promoting accountability and reparations.
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Community Justice Centers
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Outcomes and Reports
- Vermont Community Justice Center Reparative Panel Programs, Outcome Evaluation Final Report
- Reparative Vs. Standard Probation
- Circles of Support & Accountability, Final Report
- Circles of Support & Accountability, Executive Summary
- CoSA in Vermont: Quantitative Outcomes and Qualitative Understandings
- Theorizing Community Integration as Desistance-Promotion, Kathryn J. Fox
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Resources
- Principles of Restorative Practices
- 28 V.S.A § 2a Restorative Justice
- 24 V.S.A Chapter 58: Community Justice Centers
- Coming Home- a full-length documentary exploring Vermont COSA
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Coming home – COSA model in VT password is "cosa"
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- Journal Sentinal article from 2016 about COSAs in VT
- Listen to a Vermont Public Radio Vermont Edition segment: Addressing Recidivism with Community
- Read more about the CoSA model from the National Reentry Resource Center
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Inside Vermont’s Radical Approach to Helping the Formerly Incarcerated Succeed