The Caribbean Umbrella Body for Restorative Behaviour (CURB) is a Caribbean network of NGOs working to assist and support crime survivors, prisoners, ex-prisoners and their families. Click Here for a Flash file about CURB or visit our website to Find Out More.

In our effort to continue to bring our readers the most relevant information for the Caribbean region, CURB is pleased to announce a new column dealing with the application of restorative justice in educational settings.

This special feature will commence in August 2008. So look out for it and tell all your friends in the field of education!

Vote Now in Caribbean RJ Survey.

CURB would like to stimulate discussion in the Caribbean as to how regional states should implement restorative justice. Cast your vote in our Online RJ Survey on this important topic. Go to our Online Survey to cast your vote.

Search Caribbean RJ Directory.

Need to find a prison ministry or support service for crime survivors in the Caribbean? Then search the Caribbean RJ Resource Directory which lists various agencies which provide support to crime survivors, prisoners, ex-prisoners and their respective families.

Caribbean RJ Events Calendar.

CURB also provides a Caribbean Restorative Justice Events Calendar at our website. This helps to network providers of restorative justice and therapeutic jurisprudence services by allowing them to Add their events hosted in the Caribbean for FREE. The calendar is available online Here.

Caribbean RJ Audio Feed.

CURB offers an audio version of our Blog articles and of The Restorative Review for persons "on the go". You can listen to our Blog and this newsletter or download an MP3 file or subscribe to a Podcast from the AudioFeed link on the Newsletter page of our website.

Stop Prison Abuse Blog.

CURB is committed to highlighting and eliminating prison sexual assault and abuse in the Caribbean. We encourage you to visit the Stop Prison Abuse website for more information and subscribe to the Stop Prison Abuse Blog.

Audio versions of our Stop Prison Abuse project blog posts are available from the News page of the Stop Prison Abuse website.

The CURB Restorative Justice Fund was set up to provide support to primary and secondary crime survivors. For more information about the CURB RJ Fund please visit the RJ Fund Page or download our RJ Fund Brochure.

To contribute to primary and secondary crime survivors via the RJ Fund, please Contact CURB.

Trouble viewing images in this eNewsletter? Read It Online

Prefer to Listen? Click the Play Button when you Read It Online OR Download the Audio File.

Therapeutic Jurisprudence in the Caribbean.

On June 9-12,2008, the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, a New York City based institution, held its international meeting in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The meeting drew 200 participants from around the world.

The International Network on Therapeutic Jurisprudence (INTJ) took the opportunity to piggyback on that meeting to hold a therapeutic jurisprudence (TJ) mini-conference of its own, consisting of 10 panels drawing participants from 11 countries, including Puerto Rico, the United States, Canada, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Israel, Pakistan, New Zealand, Australia, and the Netherlands.

The INTJ is a group of academics and practitioners from the fields of law (including lawyers, judges, law professors), psychology, social work, criminology, psychiatry, medicine, and public health.

The TJ mini-conference presentations included a Maori law professor discussing TJ and Maori justice in New Zealand, a Pakistani legal scholar on TJ and Islamic law, and an American lawyer recommending that proposed legislation be subjected to a 'peacemaking test' regarding the resolution of conflicts that might develop under the new law.

Many of the TJ presentations discussed the need to bring a more interdisciplinary and humanistic focus to legal education, teaching lawyers to function well as counselors and to be psychologically sensitive, insightful and empathetic.

A large number of presentations focused on matters of criminal law, juvenile justice, and family issues. Several dealt with restorative justice themes of mediation and victim-offender matters. Many also discussed an expanded, more holistic role for defense counsel.

The founder of the INTJ, David Wexler, a law professor in Puerto Rico, delivered a sterling presentation which was drawn from his recently released book titled "Rehabilitating Lawyers: Principles of Therapeutic Jurisprudence for Criminal Law Practice".

In 2009, INTJ will hold a similar mini-conference in New York City, piggybacking on the larger meeting of the International Academy of Law and Mental Health. Abstracts from interested presenters are due by the end of July 2008.

For further information about the 2009 TJ mini-conference as well as on therapeutic jurisprudence generally, please visit the INTJ website at www.therapeuticjurisprudence.org or email David Wexler at davidBwexler@yahoo.com.

TT Ex-Prisoner Slams Government.

Update On BVI Prison Crowding.

During the day the prison facilities experiences an intense heat that beats down on the poorly ventilated buildings and crowded cell blocks, posing a hazard to the health of inmates... (Read More OR Listen).

Guyana Plans To Address Prison Crowding.

Guyanese Home Affairs Minister, Clement Rohee noted that breaches in security, the fast spread of communicable diseases, high level of stress among the prison population were some of the results of overcrowding. So too are increased rates of physical and sexual abuse... (Read More OR Listen).

Decline in Prison Violence in Jamaica.

The Jamaica Corrections Department ensured that inmates who have committed non-violent crimes are removed from the high risk facilities to medium and low risk institutions. As a result, there are fewer vulnerable prisoners incarcerated with aggressive violent offenders... (Read More OR Listen).