The Price of Forgiveness

April 5^th 2OOl

The Price of Forgiveness

A Cost/Benefit Analysis of Restorative Justice 

A one-day symposium was hosted by Community Mediation Services, Inc., which is located in Jamaica, NY. MVFR-Texas was represented there. The symposium dealt with the many facets and issues concerning the topic of forgiveness, reconciliation, and also restorative justice.

MVFR-Texas was graciously offered round trip airfare for two, an overnight stay at the Sheraton Inn in New York City, and was also finished meals, transportation to and from the airport, and also to the event 

The event started at approximately 9:15 AM and lasted until 4:30 PM. There were breaks throughout the day, and also a lunch was served. An audience of approximately sixty people attended the event. The attendees came from different walks of life. Some were students studying to be lawyers, others were victim services mediators, and still others were from the general public. 

The event was held in New York City, in the Queens Borough at the location of “The Queens College of New York”. There were seven speakers on two separate panels. One panel consisted of five speakers. This pond worked during the morning segment During the afternoon segment, an additional two speakers were added to the group. 

Many facts were disclosed concerning the how’s and why’s of the topics of forgiveness, reconciliation, and restorative justice. At the days end, it appeared that everyone had learned something positive, including those individuals who were on the panel.   

SPEAKERS
Johann Christoph Arnold, author of the hook Why Forgive?, has dedicated his life to the cause of peace, both on local and global levels. During the Civil Rights Movement he marched with Martin Luther King Jr and, most recently, he has participated In conversations with leading grass root organizations in Palestine to review the possibilities for peace in the Middle East An outspoken advocate for peace and reconciliation, he has traveled the world as a peacemaker, working with such world leaders as Desmond Tutu, Mother Theresa, Thich Nhat Hanh and Pope John Paul LI. Johann is an accomplished author and public speaker on the topic of forgiveness and related themes. His books have sold over 250,000 copies and have been translated into eight foreign languages. In addition to his writing, he continues to counsel prison inmates, juvenile delinquents and private clients,

Ron Carlson works and lives in Houston, Texas. His only sister, Deborah, was murdered in 1983 by Karla Faye Tucker and Daniel Ryan Garrett. Infamously known throughout Texas as the 'pickaxe murders," Ron supported the death sentence given to the two perpetrators, but also turned to drugs and alcohol to cover his anger and despair In 1990, his strong religious faith led him to meet with Karla Faye Tucker in prison and begin a dialogue with her that led to what he saw as his ultimate healing. Ron eventually protested Ms. Tucker's execution, and was present with the members of her family when she was put to death in 1998. He is now committed to speaking around the county about his own journey through the process of forgiveness and what it has done to change his life.

Carl Goldberg, Ph.D., is a psychoanalyst in New York City and the author of 12 books and 170 professional publications. He is the Editor-for-the-Americas of the International Journal of Psychotherapy and the Journal of Adult Development. His book Speaking with the Devil received the H.M. Moss Achievement Award for the best book published in 1996 on a subject related to theology.

Karin Ho has been the Administrator of the Office of Victim Services within the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction since 1995. Prior to starting her career in corrections, Karin worked as an advocate for victims of sexual assault for ova 10 years in Ohio and New York. She is committed to ensuring that all victims are given a voice and have the opportunity to participate throughout the corrections process.

Honorable Quentin L. Kopp was appointed to the San Mateo Superior Court in 1999. Prior to this, judge Kopp was a practicing trial attorney and senior partner at Kopp & DiFranco. Throughout his life Judge Kopp has been dedicated to civil service, serving in the California State Senate from 1986- 1998 and therein also serving as a member of the California Transportation Commission (1988-98) and the California Law Commission (1995-98). This experience provided the expertise required for his leadership in supporting the passage of California Assembly Bill 2804 which amends the California Evidence Code to render the statements of apologies or other benevolent gestures inadmissible as evidence of an admissible liability in a civil action.

Dennis L. Whittman, Director of the Genesee Justice program and the recent recipient of the 2000 New York State Crime Victims Board award for "Outstanding Victim Advocacy has been involved in victims' rights issues since establishing Genesee Justice in 1980, emanating from his twelve years experience as a New York State Probation Officer As the Director for Genesee Justice, Dennis currently oversees five community programs focusing on various justice initiatives involving youth, adults and women.
He is a Past President for the New York State Crime Victims Board Advisory Council and Founder of the New York State Coalition for Crime Victims. In addition to the award previously mentioned, Dennis has been the recipient of the NYS Bar Association awards for "Outstanding Contribution to Law & Justice" and "Outstanding Victim Advocacy"

Everett Worthington, Ph.D., is Professor and Chair of the Department of Psychology at Virginia Commonwealth University. 1-Ic is also a licensed Clinical Psychologist in Virginia. He has published 16 books and over 100 articles and scholarly chapters, mostly on forgiveness, marriage, and family topics. He edits Marriage and Family: A Christian Journal and directs "A Campaign for Forgiveness Research," a project devoted to studying the impact of forgiveness and reconciliation all over the world. (www.forgiving.org). He is committed to public speaking, videotape and magazine writing, and working with media to educate people about forgiveness and reconciliation.