Non-Verbal Communication Analysis in Victim-Offender Mediations

In this paper we present a non-invasive ambient intelligence framework for the semi-automatic analysis of non-verbal communication applied to the restorative justice field. In particular, we propose the use of computer vision and social signal processing technologies in real scenarios of Victim-Offender Mediations, applying feature extraction techniques to multi-modal audio-RGB-depth data. We compute a set of behavioral indicators that define communicative cues from the fields of psychology and observational methodology. We test our methodology on data captured in real world Victim-Offender Mediation sessions in Catalonia in collaboration with the regional government. We define the ground truth based on expert opinions when annotating the observed social responses. Using different state-of-the-art binary classification approaches, our system achieves recognition accuracies of 86% when predicting satisfaction, and 79% when predicting both agreement and receptivity. Applying a regression strategy, we obtain a mean deviation for the predictions between 0.5 and 0.7 in the range [1-5] for the computed social signals.Comment: Please, find the supplementary video material at: http://sunai.uoc.edu/~vponcel/video/VOMSessionSample.mp

Criminal Mediation is the BASF of the Criminal Justice System: Not Replacing Traditional Criminal Adjudication, Just Making it Better

Published in cooperation with the American Bar Association Section of Dispute Resolutio

Restorative justice and confucianism in Hong Kong

This thesis is a study of victim-offender mediation meetings in two non-government organisations in Hong Kong – Methodist Centre and Evangelical Lutheran Church Social Service – that the author conducted between January 2015 and February 2016 for the purpose of a doctorate. 22 social workers from Methodist Centre (Project Concord) and Evangelical Lutheran Church Social Service (Hong Kong Youth Enhancement Scheme) have been interviewed. The prime aim of the study was to understand in what way and what sense Confucianism, Confucian relational ethics and filial piety affect the attitude of social workers towards restorative justice and the implementation of restorative justice in Hong Kong. Social workers as mediators play a vital role in victim-offender mediation meetings because they actualise and interpret restorative justice principles. The social workers' understandings of Confucianism and restorative justice are fundamental to the implementation of restorative justice in Hong Kong. The focus of this study is an interpretation of: the lived experiences of social workers and their understanding of Confucianism and its core values; the role of macro-community members; the role of parents as micro-community members; and the role of social workers as mediators in victim-offender mediations. The aim and focus of the study translate into three central research questions: (1) How do social workers in Hong Kong understand Confucianism in general, and hierarchical social order, ‘face’, shame, and filial piety in particular? (2) From the perceptions of social workers in Hong Kong, under the influence of Confucianism, who are the macro-community members and what is the role of parents as micro-community members in victim-offender mediation? (3) How do Confucian relational ethics, filial piety, shame and Confucianism influence the attitudes of social workers as mediators in relation to the philosophy and practice of restorative justice in victim-offender mediation

See Spot Mediate: Utilizing the Emotional and Psychological Benefits of "Dog Therapy" in Victim-Offender Mediation

Published in cooperation with the American Bar Association Section of Dispute Resolutio

It\u27s Not World Peace, but ... Restorative Justice: Analysis of Recidivism Rates in Campbell Law School\u27s Juvenile Justice Project

This Comment explores victim-offender mediation and specifically the recidivism rates of the juveniles who participated in Campbell\u27s Juvenile Justice Project (JJP). Part II gives a brief background on the different theories of justice and the move towards restorative justice. Part III explains how the JJP came to be and how it currently functions. Part IV outlines the methods used to determine the recidivism rates of the program. Part V displays the results of the study and illustrates the differences with charts. Part VI discusses the possible explanations for the differences in the recidivism rates. Part VII concludes with closing remarks and recommendations

Access to justice : the role of community-based paralegals in community restorative justice in rural KwaZulu-Natal.

Doctor of Administration in Management Studies. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban 2014.Access to justice in rural KwaZulu-Natal is wholly inadequate, particularly where domestic violence is concerned. Despite the enactment of post-1994 criminal justice statutory frameworks, the majority of women living in rural areas experience barriers to justice. Yet the fight against injustice cannot be left solely to the police, lawyers and courts. Rather, there is a need to involve other stakeholders, such as ordinary people, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and traditional authorities. This research study investigates whether and how community-based paralegals (CBPs) facilitate access to justice. It explores the role of paralegals in community restorative justice through four rural community-based advice offices under the umbrella of the Centre for Community Justice and Development (CCJD), an NGO in Pietermaritzburg. The four community advice offices under study in rural KwaZulu-Natal are Bulwer, Ixopo, Madadeni and New Hanover. The study examines the interrelationship between restorative justice, community-based paralegals and domestic violence with specific reference to the Domestic Violence Act (No. 116 of 1998). Underlying the domestic violence lens adopted to explore the role of CBPs in community restorative justice are philosophical worldviews of pragmatism to determine what works under the circumstances and advocacyparticipation to give voice to the study participants. The study employs a socio-legal, qualitative research design supported by statistical case intake and outcome data. A meta-conceptual framework allowed a multiple-case study strategy that applies several units of analysis and draws upon multiple sources of evidence. The research findings reveal the connection between the engagement of paralegals by rural community members and the role of paralegals in handling domestic violence cases in an environment of legal pluralism. Furthermore, findings show that while paralegals straddle criminal, traditional and informal justice systems to address the legal needs of rural women, contrary to mainstream literature, domestic violence cases can be resolved through community restorative justice. Findings demonstrate that the Domestic Violence Act fails to meet the needs of victims of domestic violence who seek family sustainability. The community restorative justice practices of CBPs directed toward domestic violence fill a justice gap created by contradictions between rule of law orthodoxy and customary law. Based upon the role of CBPs in advancing access to justice through community restorative justice, the study concludes with process theory-building for forum shopping and communication pragmatism and suggests a private-based conceptual model for community-based paralegals addressing domestic violence cases through community restorative justice. Practical implications for law and policy and a way forward for community restorative justice in rural areas are also presented along with visions of future research

It\u27s Not World Peace, but ... Restorative Justice: Analysis of Recidivism Rates in Campbell Law School\u27s Juvenile Justice Project

This Comment explores victim-offender mediation and specifically the recidivism rates of the juveniles who participated in Campbell\u27s Juvenile Justice Project (JJP). Part II gives a brief background on the different theories of justice and the move towards restorative justice. Part III explains how the JJP came to be and how it currently functions. Part IV outlines the methods used to determine the recidivism rates of the program. Part V displays the results of the study and illustrates the differences with charts. Part VI discusses the possible explanations for the differences in the recidivism rates. Part VII concludes with closing remarks and recommendations