Deidre Lavallee is on a mission.
The justice coordinator of the Saskatoon Tribal Council wants more people involved in the restorative justice program, where the offender must face the victim and work out some form of restitution.
“This process really gives victims a voice in the system. You know for these low risk offences the courts don’t involve them, unless it is a murder or a big robbery. So this really gives them a voice and gives them an opportunity to be part of the solution,” said Lavallee.
A one day conference on restorative justice gets underway Friday morning at the Indian and Metis Friendship Centre in Saskatoon.
Shawn Bursey is a believer in this “justice without a trial” approach.
Three years ago, his car was broken into. A couple years later, the thieves were identified.
Rather than pursue charges, Bursey got involved with a restorative justice program through the Saskatoon Tribal Council.
He met with the teenage thieves and they worked out a solution.
“It’s almost harder on them than actually going into the justice system, because they know that what they did is wrong and they are kind of scared to come sit in front of me,” said Bursey.
With the help of the program, the boys agreed to perform community service work.
Bursey is one of the keynote speakers at a restorative justice conference.
