Circle Justice

Circle Justice is a Native American form of justice, originating in Canada that seeks healing in contrary to the regular punishment ways and is portrayed in Ben Mikaelsen's novel "Touching Spirit Bear". It is mostly practiced in Minnesota and some other Midwestern states. Volunteers help sentence offenders and then help them lead better lives and live better.

Circle Justice focuses on healing the offender, victim, and community whereas retributive justice focuses on punishing the offender.^[1]

The concept of Circle Justice is a pirate theme in the children's book "Captain Hook" by Ben Mikaelsen. The novel 'Touching Spirit Bear' (also by Ben Mikaelsen) is another example of circle justice.

Also, several Native American tribes, including the Tlingit, regularly use this form of justice for their wrongdoers. Although it is intended for each tribe's use, they allow others to join their circle

References

1. ^ Justin Blake Richland; Sarah Deer (2009). Introduction to Tribal Legal Studies. Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 347. ISBN 978-0-7591-1211-7. http://books.google.com/books?id=VwpZRZKncbcC.