Updated Friday, June 27, 2008

Mediation program brings justice that transforms

By Steve DeVane

BR Managing Editor

Can't we just get these people together?"

That's the question Jon Powell asked a prosecutor during a juvenile court case. Powell, a Buies Creek attorney, was frustrated at his inability to help the young people involved in the case.

The meeting Powell requested didn't happen.

The criminal justice system doesn't work that way.

It's adversarial.

One side against the other.

Someone wins.

Someone loses.

Powell shared his frustration with Anthony Baker, a professor at Campbell University's law school, during a seminar in 2001.

Baker suggested that Powell consider work in mediation. Powell had been involved in civil mediation, which often involves getting two sides to agree on a dollar amount that is fair to both but satisfies neither.

But Baker was talking about criminal mediation.

"I said, 'Yeah. That's it. That's the cause I'm looking for,'" Powell said in an interview at his office.

Baker believes attorneys should see themselves as peacemakers. He could see Powell understood the "spiritual connection between human beings" and the "ministry aspect" of helping people.

Powell, a member of Memorial Baptist Church in Buies Creek, said he believes that meeting was "providential, not coincidental" because it sowed the seeds for what is now the law school's Juvenile Justice Project. The program, believed to be the first of its kind, is based on restorative justice.

Instead of focusing on punishment, restorative justice seeks to "repair the harm done," said Powell, who now coordinates the program.

"That is really the biblical approach," he said.

Restorative justice

Restorative justice seeks "to heal and put things as right as possible," according to Howard Zehr in "The Little Book of Restorative Justice." Zehr says the process tries to involve as much as possible "those who have a stake in a specific offense and to collectively identify and address harms, needs and obligations."

Shortly after their initial conversation, Powell and Baker talked with court officials in the 11th Judicial District about starting a juvenile mediation program in the area that covers Harnett, Lee and Johnston counties.

Ed Taylor, who retired as head of juvenile services for the state, helped write a grant for the program.

Taylor, a member of Westfield Baptist Church in Dunn, said he sees such efforts "as an extension of Christian service."

The Governor's Crime Commission awarded the grant, and the program started in 2004.

Students who have completed their first year of law school can take part in the program. They spend a semester in the classroom learning about juvenile law and issues related to the program and role-playing.

"You're trying to get deep into understanding the concepts," said Michael A. Myers, a Winston-Salem attorney who took the class before he graduated in 2006.

The next semester students help mediate cases.

Attorneys, other court officials and schools refer cases to the program. Both the victim and the accused must agree to participate, and it is voluntary, even for the offender.

Powell, Baker or two law students first interview separately those on both sides of the case.

The initial meetings focus on how the program works and its voluntary nature.

The person who caused the harm must be willing to repair it.

"It can't be mandated," Powell said.

Powell said that in court cases, the offenders might rebel against the punishment.

"It never becomes real to them," he said.

During the separate interviews, both sides tell their stories. The project's workers prepare them for mediation.

"If we find we can bring them together in a safe and productive way, then we will schedule a face-to-face meeting, Powell said.

Relationships

Most cases are misdemeanors, such as fights, thefts and vandalism. The people involved might know each other.

"To me, the most important thing we have is our relationship to people," Powell said. "If you lose that, it's a great loss."

Whether they know each other or not, mediation helps them see each other as human beings.

"They see you as a person," Powell said. "They get to know each other."

The mediation process determines what has been harmed and how it can be repaired.

"It's our actions that speak louder than our words," he said.

Offenders who see the result as a way to repair the harm done rather than punishment are more willing to carry it out. Powell said one offender didn't want to do "community service," but was ready to do similar jobs when he saw it as a way to repair the harm he had done.

"This is about taking responsibility and doing what's right," he said.

Powell said records show that offenders who don't go through mediation are 20 to 30 percent more likely to get in trouble again.

"It does make a difference," he said.

Powell said the program's location at Campbell has an added benefit. Some of the young people involved in the cases have never been on a college campus. The mediation expands their thinking to consider attending college.

"It's their first opportunity to think about a world beyond their own," Baker said.

Powell said the mediations help bring about transformation. Something happens in a person's soul during the process, he said.

"It helps people to think about things in a different way," he said.

Misinformation

Powell said the process often starts with misinformation on both sides. When people don't have information, they tend to fill in with their imaginations, such as assuming someone who broke in must have been watching their house.

Baker said after those involved have talked with each other, they must decide what to do next.

"It's not enough just to smile at each other," he said.

Baker said those involved need to "memorialize" the event. He compared it to the Old Testament concept of placing stones at a place to help remember what happened there. The mediator helps those involved to get to a resolution that they'll remember years later, he said.

The key is for the offender to do something tangible to make things right, Baker said.

In restorative justice, the person holds himself or herself accountable. In retributive justice, the state holds the offender accountable.

Powell said a group is working to start a similar effort in Durham. Two former students in the program went on to start similar programs in other areas of the state.

Myers started a program in Wilmington after he graduated. He moved to Winston-Salem about three months ago. About 10 attorneys in Wilmington voluntarily gave their time to the effort, he said.

Myers said he'd like to see a program in Winston-Salem.

"Everybody understands where everybody's coming from," he said. "That's the goal.

Allison Pope Cooper started a program in Edenton before she moved to Raleigh. Most people wrongly believe that most cases are settled in the courtroom, she said.

Talking with each other provides "a better outcome for everyone," Cooper said.

The Durham program would work with N.C. Central University law school students. The Edenton effort included undergraduate students from Elizabeth City State University.

Taylor said the project at Campbell helps law school students see a new way to practice law. Many attorneys become disillusioned and don't like the adversarial process, he said.

"I think it's a role model for other law schools," Taylor said.

Powell said he and Baker are seeking to expand the program to include adults. They've been invited to submit a proposal to the N.C. Department of Corrections, which they hope to do this summer. After perhaps a year or more of research a decision could be made.

"We're trying to lead the restorative justice effort in North Carolina," Powell said.