Alisha Jimenez, Restorative Justice Program Analyst for the Office of Dispute Resolution (ODR), presented restorative practices during the 2020 Nebraska Community Aid and Juvenile Justice Conference on November 5.

Co-presenters Casey Karges, Executive Director, and Clare Nelson, Restorative Justice Coordinator at The Mediation Center in Lincoln, joined Alisha to present a talk entitled, “Applying Restorative Justice Principles in Diversion Programming.”

The presentation outlined the principles of restorative practices within the context of diversionary juvenile justice. Presenters highlighted ODR’s 3-year Victim Youth Conferencing (VYC) Enhancement Initiative efforts to make juvenile restorative justice available in all 93 counties across the state. The presenters offered real-life anecdotal examples of youth who have benefitted from participation in the VYC program, including youth referred by schools, city attorneys, and county attorneys for diversion.

Victim Youth Conferencing is a restorative process whereby youth convene with those they’ve harmed during the commission of an offense in an attempt to repair the harm through safe, constructive dialogue. The youth and the harmed party meet independently with a trained facilitator to express what happened from each one’s perspective. When appropriate, the facilitator arranges for the two parties to meet to reach a point of understanding and collaboratively develop a reparation plan.