ABSTRACT
Panels are designed to provide a less formal context than court for the offender, his or her parents, the victim, supporters of the victim and/or offender and members of the community to discuss the crime and its consequences. The intention is that panel meetings should be held in locations as close as possible to where the young person lives and from which the community panel members are drawn. Panels adopt a conference-type approach to decision-making that is intended to be both inclusive and party-centred. As such, they mark a significant shift away from a court-based judicial model in which the parties are represented rather than speak for themselves. There is considerable emphasis upon both ‘restoration’ — which should be a part of all contracts — and ‘reintegration’ of the offender into the wider community. Not only does the panel have the symbolic power to ‘sign off’ the referral order once it has been discharged successfully but this also has the effect of purging the offender of the offence (as it is considered spent). The reintegrative element of referral orders is strengthened by the fact that panel meetings are not merely ‘one off’ events, but in principle entail structured meetings over the lifetime of the referral order. As a result, panels may meet to review developments as well as support, discuss and, where appropriate, congratulate the offender on progress made. Panels must hold at least one interim meeting — the first such review is recommended to be held after one month followed by at least one progress meeting for each three months of the contract. Panels are not only forums for deliberation about the harm and its consequences, but also act as a means of monitoring contract compliance and championing reintegration. According to Dignan and Marsh, as decision-making forums youth offender panels are ‘potentially one of the most radical aspects of the entire youth justice reform agenda’ (2001: 99). One of the more radical aspects of panels is the manner in which they seek to draw lay volunteers into the decision-making process as community panel members.
