what is the “Criminal Reparation Service” for juvenile offenders?

During his general political speech, Gabriel Attal announced the creation of “educational work” for delinquents under 16 years old. However, for 30 years, the “Criminal Reparation Service” has already existed. Report from the La Sauvegarde du Nord association, in Lille.

“You break, you repair. You dirty, you clean. You challenge authority, we teach you to respect it.” Prime Minister Gabriel Attal’s shocking statement made an impression on the audience during his general policy speech on January 30. He then announced the creation of “work of educational interest” for young delinquent adolescents aged 13 to 16, based on the model of community service, which only applies to those over 16.

Two months later, nothing has yet been put in place, but, in fact, the formula has already existed for 30 years. This is the Criminal Reparation Service. Last year, the courts handed down 18,000. Rather than placement in a closed educational center, young people must follow an internship to, within six months, “fix” the crimes they committed: violence, theft, damage, sexual assault or even school harassment. Rather than placement in a closed educational center, rather than a fine, the magistrate chose for these young first-time offenders a more educational solution which involves a “Second chance”. Sometimes criminal reparation comes in addition to a main sentence.

Work on thinking, but also on self-esteem

From the outside, these are modern and fairly ordinary offices a stone’s throw from the Vauban citadel in Lille. The La Sauvegarde du Nord association is authorized, in the same way as the PJJ (Judicial Protection of Youth), to organize criminal reparation courses there. Young people, aged 13 to 18, are sent there following the decision of a juvenile judge or a prosecutor. For Mohamed, 17, it will be an internship in a Red Cross warehouse. Previously, he conducted an introspective reflection with a caring but firm educator, who remains in a penal framework. “We talked and discussed a lot, it helped me thinkconfides Mohamed. I’m here for possession of drugs and carrying a bladed weapon.” He recognizes that traffic, “it’s easy money”and he realized all the considerations that could affect his future: “There is violence, it’s not good for my health, it would have closed doors for me at work, he describes. And in the event of a recurrence, “it’s prison”, Short “It makes you think.”

Embarked on a mission for the Red Cross, Mohamed and the other young people very quickly find themselves opening boxes of food, sorting clothes and participating in distributions. “Measurement also helps, it’s a good actioncomments Mohamed, Let’s say it makes up for the bad one!” For the young man it is also a question of “restore your image”. The project manager, Margaux Fernez, welcomes the young people without asking them what they have done. “We explain to them that they are part of a whole, regardless of their statusshe describes. They will help the most vulnerable. And at the end of the day, they realize that it was useful and that they too had a part in it. It’s interesting to see how some people regain self-esteem.”

Talking about the consequences and feeling remorse

The courses offered depend on the crimes committed. Refusal to comply, an urban rodeo or driving without a license will lead to an internship with commissioner Jacky Maréchal. The retired police officer recounts the tragedies he saw during his career, shows shocking films on the dangers of the road, and talks at length with young people. “When we are young, we seek strong sensations, he says. In criminal compensation, it is an opportunity for them to become aware, with bodily consequences in an accident of course, but also considerable sums to be paid for at least 30 years to compensate the victims. And then also, the notions of remorse, of knowing that the one I put in the hospital or the cemetery will never again experience the pleasures that I am going to have.”

In parallel with indirect reparations, the young offender can sometimes also directly repair his crime. For example, after tagging, the young person accompanies municipal employees to clean the walls. After a scooter theft, he or she meets the angry owner and apologizes to him. Another example concerned two teenagers from Lille who attacked a mentally disabled person in the metro, under the pretext that she was talking to herself. Nathanaël Ramphft, specialist educator, tells the story: shoving, beatings. They were found thanks to the investigation and the cameras, and to make the young people aware of their actions, a mediation meeting was organized. “It will last between an hour and an hour and a half”specifies the educator, with the idea that then, if they were to meet again outside, “they can shake hands having learned to know each other”.

“If they had sent me to prison, I wouldn’t have understood”

The physical victims are contacted each time to attempt direct reparations but many refuse. This was the case for Lina, 17, who during a violent fight injured a young girl of her age, who had insulted her on social networks, and who did not want to see her again. Lina risked prison. Instead, she had to participate in several charitable actions with different associations, complete her first aid diploma, meet victims of violence, and attend immediate appearances at the Lille judicial court. Lina knows how lucky she was. She also knows that this criminal reparation measure will ensure that nothing is recorded in her criminal record.

“This repair is an experience that allowed me to stop and think a little. I have evolved and I would even say that I have grown.”

Linda, 17 years old

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“I think that if I had been sent to prison, it would not have been the same thing at all, I would have remained angry with the girl I hit and I would have been angry with the justice system too, because I would not have understood where my mistake really was, my fault in this storyexplains Lina. I had to question myself. I was supported for this and I admit, I was even happy to come to these different meetings. Now when I look back on it, I wonder how I could have done what I did, hit like that. I’m vaccinated, I won’t do it again.”promises the young girl.

Does criminal reparation really make it possible to fight against recidivism? It is difficult to objectify the phenomenon because there are no statistics. Those responsible for the Sauvegarde du Nord association think so without being naive. “We sometimes see certain young people return and we come up against limits daily in the implementation of our repair projects”concedes Valentine Neusy-Brunnin, head of the “Criminal Reparations” department.

“Some young people are never able to recognize the acts they have committed, because coming to terms with it is not something simple, especially during adolescence.”

Valentine Neusy-Brunnin, from the La Sauvegarde du Nord association

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“Sometimes we are not able to get the support of their sensible parents, yet, as legal guardians, they support us and accompany their teenager in the repair. Unfortunately, this is not always the case”regrets the manager who sometimes does not validate the internship after the allotted six months, and therefore has to refer certain young people before the judge.

But educators note that successes are still much more numerous. They would like this measure to be offered more, and especially to young people aged 14-15 rather than 17-18 year olds. Young people who are almost adults are sometimes already past their first crime, and it is too late for criminal reparation to create a trigger for them.