QUESTION TYPE:
Essay
HAS VARIABLES:
False
STUDENT ENTRY MODE:
Basic
obligations on offenders.
46. Restitution takes place whenever injured parties are repaid by the individuals directly responsible for their losses.
Define and discuss restitution, symbolic restitution, and creative restitution. Compare and contrast them.
Restitution can come in many forms, e.g. financially or through services to the victim.
Community service is an example of a type of restitution that is focused on the community
as a whole. The offender might work in an animal shelter or a senior center. Sometimes
the work is related to the harm; for example, if the offender was charged with animal
cruelty, then services to an animal shelter might help the offender understand more fully
the harm created through his or her crime. This type of community service could be an
example of symbolic restitution if the offender was not able to redress the harm directly to
the victim and substituted the shelter instead. Creative restitution occurs when offenders
take the initiative, surpass the requirements of the law, and perform above and beyond the
victims’expectations. This is the ideal type of restitution, as it demonstrates that the
offender is not only aware of the harm he or she caused, but desires to make amends so
much that the restitution leaves victims better off than they were before the crimes.
Gaining Restitution from Offenders
CVIV.KARM.20.12.02 – Describe the different types of restitution.
47. Advocates of restitution claim it is beneficial on a number of fronts. Discuss restitution as a means of rehabilitating
offenders, as a means of reconciling offenders and their victims, and as a means of punishing offenders.
The United States does not utilize restitution as often as other counts as a sentencing
option, though support of it is growing. It is argued that restitution serves as a form of
rehabilitation, as it forces the offenders to understand the consequences and harm created
by their actions. They must interact directly, either with their victims or with other
similarly situated individuals in cases of symbolic restitution. This allows offenders to
make things right, which can be healing for the offenders as well. It can be a conduit to
reconciling offenders and their victims. It can serve to reduce the desire for revenge, and it
can assist in psychological healing. It is considered a punishment, following incarceration,
by those who argue that offenders have not had to repay the victim and society directly,
and hence have avoided their true responsibility; and that this punishment may serve to
deter them from offending again. This argument is somewhat flawed, however, as it does
not recognize that the majority of individuals in prison are there for street crimes and are
often poor. Allowing only individuals of means to have this as a sentencing option would
violate the 14th Amendment. Having individuals pay restitution for many years due to their
limited incomes may extend the punishment beyond what is reasonable, and moreover will
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REFERENCES:
Gaining Restitution from Offenders