CUTTING OUT THE MIDDLE PART DRUG COURT IS A GREAT THING, YET WE STILL SHOULDN’T BE CRIMINALIZING ADDICTION. CUT OUT THE MIDDLE PART AND JUST GET TO THE SERVICES. YOU SHOULDN’T HAVE TO CRIMINALIZE [BEHAVIOR] TO GET SERVICES TO THE PEOPLE.
Beyond the benefits restorative justice practices can have on the individuals involved in cases of harm, there are larger, societal benefits as well, according to Sam-Mensah and Severson. By treating the underlying reasons offenders cause harm in the first place, future instances can be avoided. Sam-Mensah cites the hypothetical example of someone who robbed a store because they were hungry.
Photo courtesy of Delinda Passas
“If you just lock them up in prison for a year, what’s that going to do?” asks Sam-Mensah. “They are just going to come back out, be hungry again, and rob another store.” Severson says that even if some policy makers and criminal justice officials can’t come to accept the tenants of restorative justice, they should consider the compelling financial case to be made through implementing its practices.
- Delinda Passas MARJ’20
“Many of the people in my caseload have been in and out of jail, and it costs around $30,000 per year to house a person in prison,” Severson states. “That’s a big reason to operate differently than we do now, so we aren’t spending this money to incarcerate the same person over and over. My work mitigates those costs and relieves our overrun courts and overcrowded prisons.”
In 2018, Delinda Passas was among the first cohort of students in the online Master of Arts in Restorative Justice (MARJ) program, and she continues to stay an active part of the VLS community through weekly conversations held for current and former restorative justice students. Passas uses her background in restorative justice to share education on restorative practices, and foster relationships within the community to support a restorative justice program within her judicial district in Colorado.
Severson says that these benefits, coupled with society’s growing awareness of inequalities and the need for justice reform, have put restorative justice on a path toward even greater acceptance and adoption, resulting in increasing demand for practitioners educated in the field. “I think that people are starting to be more willing to think ‘what do we need to do to change things for the better?’” Severson remarks. “This is the prime time to jump in and be a leader in that.”
To learn more about how Passas puts restorative justice theories into practice, watch her video at vermontlaw.edu/delinda.
“This field is becoming more highly regarded, and they are seeking people with master’s degrees because they are realizing the impact and importance of a position like this. People who really believe in it are going to find jobs. They are out there.”
A Conversation with
Delinda Passas MARJ’20
LOQUITUR
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