Conceptualizing Restorative Justice for People with Mental Illnesses Leaving Prison or Jail

Individuals with psychiatric disabilities who are involved in the criminal justice system face a number of challenges to community integration upon release. There is a critical need to develop and evaluate interventions for these individuals that connect them to the community by enhancing naturalistic social connections and helping them to participate meaningfully in valued roles. The purposes of this article are to describe, provide a theoretical rationale, and propose a conceptual model for the use of a particular restorative justice model, circles of support and accountability, to meet this need. We describe the principles of restorative justice (repairing harm, stakeholder involvement, and the transformation of community and governmental roles and relationships) and how these map on to elements of the circles intervention. These elements include a focus on community participation, positive social support, democratic decision making, collective ownership of crime problems, and connection to community-based resources. We then suggest how changes in identity transformation, moral development and motivation, and collective efficacy might mediate relationships between these intervention elements and community integration outcomes. Finally, we encourage the systematic evaluation of the circles intervention for people with mental health conditions leaving custody and provide recommendations for policy and practice. Public Policy Relevance Statement The combined challenges associated with experiencing a mental health condition and justice system involvement put those with psychiatric disabilities leaving custody particularly at risk for social and community exclusion. Interventions like circles of support and accountability have the potential to positively impact both justice-involved individuals and the larger communities in which they live, but have not been implemented or studied for those with mental health conditions. By describing, providing a theoretical rationale, and proposing a conceptual model for the use of circles for this group, this article accomplishes a requisite step in advancing policy developments in this area.