While criminal justice looks at a crime as a violation of the law and requires the state to determine blame and impose punishment, Restorative Justice looks at crime as a violation of people and relationships. This means that we involve affected parties, offenders, and the community in an effort to repair harm and prevent future incidents from occurring. The central focus in Restorative Justice is repairing the harm and holding the participant accountable, as well as ensuring that the participant has the resources they need not to reoffend. The restorative practice is guided by restorative questions such as:

 

• What happened?

• What were you thinking at the time?

• What have you thought about since?

• Who has been affected by what you have done? In what way?

• What do you think you need to do to make things right?

• Who has been harmed? How will you repair that harm?