“Inmates lose much more than their freedom upon going to prison,” reports Diane Schetky, a forensic psychiatrist.  “They also lose their autonomy, self esteem, identity, friends, choices, recreational outlets, and privacy.  Prison security trumps many activities of daily life that we take for granted and may leave inmates feeling that it overshadows their personhood.”

There are unwritten rules in prison culture such as: “Guys don’t get sad, they get mad.”  The showing of feelings may be viewed as a sign of weakness which other inmates may exploit to their advantage.  Acts of kindness may arouse suspicion, and hypervigilence is common because of the need to watch one’s back.
 

 Spring, 2010.  Two middle school boys had been physically and verbally fighting with each other since the beginning of school.  The school had tried repeated detentions but they didn’t have any impact.  Next the young men were suspended.  They still continued to fight and now they were involving other children in the school.  Teachers, administrators, and parents were all concerned and frustrated.  The school resource officer had become involved and now the boys were facing expulsion and possible criminal charges.  However, a school administrator asked if the Restorative School Practices of Maine, (RSPM) a program of the Restorative Justice Project, would be willing to facilitate a restorative conference to work at resolving this difficult situation. 

 “Much is said about the process of dealing with the offender, but importantly, the Restorative Justice process also fosters healing and closure for the victim,”  says Miriam Johnson, Assistant District Attorney for all juvenile cases in Waldo, Knox, Lincoln and Sagadahoc Counties. She adds, “This healing and closure is also essential for the juvenile offender being re-accepted back into the community.”

 “The justice system does its best to include the victim’s interests in its process.  But, the formality of the system is intimidating to many.  And, the closed nature of juvenile proceedings and the adversarial nature of the court process sometimes restricts victim-offender interaction.  The result is that in the court system, the victim is given the opportunity to address the court, but is not given the opportunity to address the juvenile defendant directly, and is certainly not permitted to have a dialogue with the offender.”

When volunteers sign on to be mentors for RJP, they commit to a challenging but rewarding journey that provides opportunity for growth for themselves as well as those they mentor.

“Mentoring is courageous work, requiring us to bring our full selves to the table on behalf of those we support,” says Lynne Hutchinson, Volunteer Coordinator for two of the six counties RJP serves.   

“We are working with individuals dealing with a multitude of challenges ranging from...