What Would a Truly Restorative Justice System Look Like for Youth?

Imagine this:

A 16-year-old gets into a fight at school.
Someone gets hurt. The police are called.
But instead of a trip to intake and a date with the juvenile court, something else happens.

The young person is met with questions, not cuffs.
They’re asked:
What happened?
Who was hurt?
What needs to be done to make it right?
And—perhaps most importantly—What do you need to stay safe, to grow, to not make this mistake again?

Now, hold that image. Because that’s a glimpse into what a truly restorative justice system for youth could look like.

We don’t need more punishment. We need more purpose.

Let’s be honest.
Our current system is built more for control than for correction.
It reacts instead of responds.
It punishes instead of teaches.

And it forgets that most young people involved in the system are still growing their brains, their identities, and their capacity to make better choices.

They’re not just “at risk.” They’re at a crossroads.

A restorative system doesn’t let youth off the hook. It just offers them a hook to hang hope on.

So, what could this look like?

If we allowed ourselves to dream—and plan—here’s what we might build:

Accountability Without Isolation

Restorative justice means youth take responsibility for the harm they’ve caused—not through confinement, but through conversation, repair, and reintegration.

Instead of solitary, imagine circles.
Instead of write-ups, relationship-building.
Instead of court dates, community conferences that include the person harmed, the person who caused harm, and those affected.

Education at the Center

Every touchpoint in the system should be an opportunity to teach, not just manage. Young people should be connected to trauma-informed schools, high-quality tutors, GED prep, career exploration, and yes—even the arts.

Let’s stop asking, “What’s wrong with this kid?” and start asking, “What do they need to learn to make different choices next time?”

Healing as a Measure of Success

If a young person leaves our system more angry, isolated, or hopeless than when they entered—we failed.

In a restorative system, we’d track healing, relationships, and wellbeing just as much as we track recidivism. We’d support therapy, mentorship, family re-engagement, and cultural connection.

Community Ownership

A truly restorative system doesn’t just belong to the courts or corrections. It belongs to all of us—educators, advocates, family members, neighbors. It’s built on partnerships between schools, mental health providers, community organizations, and yes—even the youth themselves. They’re not just recipients of the process. They’re co-creators of it.

But What About Accountability?

Here’s the thing:
Restorative justice isn’t soft.
It’s serious work.
It’s often harder than detention.

It requires a young person to face the harm they caused.
To listen. To feel. To make things right in a meaningful way, and to stay in relationship with the very people and systems they could easily walk away from.

That’s real accountability. Not the kind enforced by a cell door, but the kind that builds character, empathy, and growth.

If we want a better future, we have to build it now.

We already know that punitive systems don’t work for kids.
What we don’t do nearly enough is imagine—and implement—something better.

So this is an invitation.
To correctional educators, diversion program staff, juvenile judges, and policymakers:
Let’s stop managing youth like mini-adults.
Let’s stop confusing compliance with transformation.
And let’s build a system where the goal isn’t to “break the cycle”—
It’s to rewrite the story.

Cheers til we have coffee togther next Sunday. And…oh yeah…let’s free DC. :)