The focus of restorative policing is within a community-oriented policing approach, where the police have important tasks in rendering services to the population. Traditional forms of penal treatment no longer satisfy entirely, especially in relation to nuisances, incivilities, and petty crime. Is the community police officer the simple 'registrator' of events between victim and offender? Can s/he take the role of mediator, or can s/he refer to external instances in the domain of mediation or to civil judges? Do the police have their own restorative regulations and institutionalized practices, and are they involved in mediation in penal matters? In what ways do police officers contribute to informal restorative practices and conflict resolution in neighborhoods? This book is about restorative policing practices, and the place and role police forces can take in this kind of approach.

Culmination of a survey and review conducted by a U.S. Department of Justice Work Group and COSMOS Corporation.