The Caribbean Umbrella Body for Restorative Behaviour (CURB) is the first and only Caribbean network of NGOs working to assist and support crime survivors, prisoners, ex-prisoners and their families... Find Out More

Happy Birthday to CURB!

CURB celebrates its second anniversary on 3rd May, 2007! We praise and thank God for His wonderful goodness and grace to us over the past 2 years.

We promise to continue to labour for unity among organisations that seek to provide support for those affected by crime and offending behaviour and to lobby for much needed change in the criminal justice system as a whole.

Vote in CURB RJ Poll

CURB would like to stimulate discussion among Caribbean nationals as to the manner in which we should implement restorative justice.

We have chosen to use an Online Poll to obtain your perspective on this important topic which is able to improve victim satisfaction and reduce crime and re-offending.

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• In the R.J. Spotlight
• Excellent Job by NABCJ
• Call for Sentencing Reform in Justice System
• Laws Coming for Prison Sexual Abuse
• Sentence Planning for BVI Inmates
• T&T Needs Justice Consultations
• R.J. Must Not Sacrifice Victims
• And Much More Caribbean R.J. News!

Community Justice

On Tuesday 17th April, 2007 past president of National Association of Blacks in Criminal Justice (NABCJ), Matthew Hamidullah, conducted an informative session on Community Justice during what was billed as "Community Justice Day" at the Trinidad and Tobago Prison Service Training College.

Mr. Hamidullah was part of the team of delegates from NABCJ which conducted the Sixth Annual Conference and Cultural Exchange Programme from 16th to 18th April, 2007. (See article below for details on other aspects of the training delivered by NABCJ.)

Community justice is known by many different names including restorative justice and restorative community justice. It is an alternative way to look at the criminal justice system. Crime is viewed as an offence against the community, which includes the victim and the offender, rather than against the State. Community justice focuses on repairing the harm to victims, communities, and offenders that occurs when a crime is committed.

A wide variety of initiatives, programs, and strategies fall under the heading of community justice. These include but are not limited to:-

1. Community policing and police-community corrections partnerships;
2. Problem-solving or specialized courts, such as mental health courts and courts;
3. Community prosecution;
4. Reentry programs;
5. Victim services, including restorative justice programs; and
6. Community planning/mobilization initiatives.

Community justice principles encourage new approaches to crime and criminal justice:

1. Victims have an active role in the justice system. They are empowered to ensure that their needs are met and to resolve the feelings toward the crime that was committed. As a result, victims receive adequate reparation and can walk away from the experience feeling satisfied that justice has been served.

2. Communities can enjoy a lower crime rate and safer neighbourhoods by taking action against their crime problems rather than having the justice system make decisions for them. They can address their justice issues on a local level and find solutions that work for their unique circumstances. This involves a commitment to crime prevention programs and rehabilitation for the offender.

3. Offenders are required to accept responsibility for their crimes and must take an active role in repairing the damage their crime has created. In the process, they are exposed to crime prevention programs and come away from the system with a better understanding of the consequences of their actions and the skills to make better decisions in the future.

Consequently, everyone benefits from Community Justice practices which have been proven to reduce future crime, thereby increasing community safety and decreasing the number of cases processed by our overburdened justice system. As cases are diverted, justice professionals can channel freed resources to more effectively address crime.

Community justice practices repair the harm caused by crime. Victims and communities have the opportunity to work with the offender to determine a restitution agreement that is appropriate and satisfactory.

Restitution is commonly paid to victims and communities at a greater rate than cases processed through traditional systems, repairing the harm caused by crime, rebuilding communities, and promoting greater satisfaction with the justice system for all parties.

The three day series of workshops on penal reform, community justice and restorative justice conducted from 16th to 18th April, 2007 by the US based National Association of Blacks in Criminal Justice (NABCJ) was a resounding success!

One of the most impacting sessions was that conducted on Alternative Forms of Release by Willie Agnew of the Washington DC Pretrial Services Agency.

Addressing the limitations and liabilities of a financial bail system, Mr. Agnew shared on various alternatives which included non-financial bail structures with or without conditions...Read Full Article

The ongoing justice system reform consultations in Jamaica are producing a series of innovative suggestions from members of the public who are dissatisfied with the recent performance of the island's criminal justice system.

One comment has been for the development of a more creative sentencing structure in order to achieve equity in the treatment of offenders and to reduce overcrowding in prisons. Guidelines similar to what obtains in the Untied States of America have been advocated for introduction to the Jamaican justice system...Read Full Article

In the wake of alleged sexual abuse of inmates in Jamaica's correctional centres, a decision was recently taken to ventilate the issue before the parliamentary committee examining the Offences Against the Person Act and the Incest Punishment Act when the committee meets in the new parliamentary year.

Leader of Opposition Business in the Senate, Anthony Johnson, raised the issue in Parliament and asked his counterpart to account for the steps being taken by the Government to address sexual abuse in prisons as well as sexual abuse of persons in children's homes...Read Full Article

Convicted prisoners in the British Virgin Islands will soon be able to benefit from a pilot project in sentence planning.

The pilot project, which will run for a period of three months, will involve ten convicts in the first instance. Its immediate goal is to help the convicts to prepare for life after discharge so that they can live law-abiding lives.

This will be achieved through conducting rigid risk assessments for each participant in the programme; identifying their respective needs; helping develop strategies to reduce those risks and meet those needs; and preparing the convict for community reintegration.

A longer term objective of the programme, however, is public safety and the reduction in criminal victimisation through recidivism of offenders...Read Full Article

On 18th April, 2007 the People's National Movement commenced a series of crime consultations wherein the ruling party in Trinidad and Tobago sought to inform the public of its crime prevention strategies and inquire from nationals of their concerns in relation to crime.

Prior to the commencement of the consultations, CURB issued a press release suggesting that the government embark upon consultations which would encompass the entire system of criminal justice and not merely seek to treat with matters under the purview of the police and prison services... Read Full Article

The cry for regional governments to observe the human rights of incarcerated persons must be balanced with the need to ensure that the system of justice does not lean in favour of offenders.

A Jamaican pastor has urged the Jamaican Prime Minister to consider that "charity is not honoured by the sacrifice of justice".

He contended that there was a danger that, in seeking to temper the State's treatment of offenders, crime victims would feel that they were themselves being punished... Read Full Article