Our History

From 2014 - Present…

CRJ and Police Partnership: A National Model for Implementation…

In 2014 and 2015, the Community Restorative Justice (CRJ) program was thriving and was increasingly being viewed as a model for implementation around the country. Officer Appreciation Days, presentations at briefings, regular meetings with the police liaison team, and a more formalized orientation and shadowing program for new officers all contributed to stronger relationships and greater consistency in LCJP’s partnership with police. CRJ staff developed interactive in-service trainings that invited officers to debate whether or not hypothetical cases were a good fit for restorative justice. 2015 saw an increase in the number of cases involving directly harmed parties referred by the Longmont police, in part due to a shift in the offense types being referred, with a decrease in juvenile curfew and possession of marijuana cases, and an increase in cases that involved a directly harmed party. Greater trust between police officers and the CRJ staff and a greater understanding on the part of officers of what makes a good restorative justice case led to this shift in the type of referrals received. As a result, more members of the Longmont community had access to the healing potential of restorative justice in the wake of significant harm. 90% of conferences were also attended by a police officer, allowing for police perspective and impacts to be voiced while strengthening relationships and building mutual understanding between police and citizens.

The CRJ model received national attention in 2015 during the Partnering with Police at the National Association of Community and Restorative Justice (NACRJ) conference in Florida. LCJP’s integration of strengths-based approaches in restorative justice processes was also presented at the 2015 NACRJ conference. In 2015, an opportunity emerged to establish a second CRJ program in Boulder County. Ultimately, this new opportunity did not come to fruition, but it further demonstrated the desire of other communities to replicate the LCJP model.

Advancements in Training…

2014-15 saw great strides in volunteer training development through the teamwork of LCJP Staff. They had noticed that they were facilitating the most complicated cases and wanted to continue to build volunteers’ comfort and skill taking on more difficult facilitation roles. Out of this need, the training team incorporated a forum theater model into LCJP’s Advanced Facilitator Training, leading to an overall more challenging and confidence-building learning experience for volunteer facilitators. These advancements in training equipped volunteers to take on more complicated and high-impact cases, such as the “Tree-Cutting Case” in 2015, which received a great deal of media attention, included six participating harmed parties, and was facilitated by a team of two volunteers. LCJP’s signature style of delivering training through interactive and fun games and activities began to be shared nationally first at the 2014 IIRP conference and subsequently at the 2015 NARCJ conference, and later internationally at conferences in New Zealand and Europe.

LCJP Brings Restorative Justice to Main Street…

LCJP brought restorative justice to Longmont’s Main Street in May of 2016. After thriving for nearly a decade in the beloved home at 333 Terry Street, the new space at 528 Main was selected for its convenient location within the Longmont Area Chamber of Commerce. This served as both a strategic and symbolic move, as the Main Street locale offers LCJP more visibility, a stronger community presence, more connections with community agencies and an increase in drop-in visitors to our office. Chamber of Commerce members have learned about LCJP due to its Main Street positioning within their building, prompting a select few to serve on LCJP’s board of directors. The visibility of the new location resulted in nearly every Restorative Practices Orientation reaching capacity, and even prompting a waitlist for some of the monthly sessions.

LCJP Launches the RESTORE Program…

LCJP launched the RESTORE conference model for shoplifting cases in June 2016. The model brings together up to 6 responsible persons referred for shoplifting, an officer who is assigned to support local retailers with shoplifting, a loss prevention representative from a local store, and a community representative. Launching RESTORE gave experienced volunteer facilitators an opportunity to learn a new way to use their restorative skills, increased the number of responsible persons who heard directly from the harmed party, and greatly reduced the amount of time clients referred for shoplifting waited to attend a conference. From June 2016, when RESTORE was launched, through the end of 2019, 91 responsible persons have heard directly from a store employee about the impacts of shoplifting. Before the program was launched, the referring merchant had to attend each responsible person’s Community Group Conference. That approach was time intensive for the merchant, and made it impossible for them to meet with the individuals they had referred to LCJP.  Now, all shoplifting clients get to hear directly from a merchant, and the merchants are able to share impacts with every responsible person.

Expanding Training Services…

From 2015-2018, LCJP responded to increasing requests from other agencies for training and technical assistance in building a restorative culture and restorative approaches to conflict. Formerly training primarily volunteers, Longmont Police and St. Vrain Valley School District teachers and administrators, LCJP’s list of clients expanded to include:

• 2 Law Enforcement Agencies (Frederick, CO & Casper, WY)

• City of Longmont staff, city summer camp counselors and Human Resource Department

• Individuals living in communal housing in Boulder, CO

• Three new CO school districts, as well as the Association of Waldorf Schools of North America

This growing list represents not only LCJP’s growing demand for training services, but also the trend for leadership across diverse organizations to embrace restorative strategies. The premise of each of the trainings was for the organizations to continue to implement restorative practices on their own after the training. As a result, all training packages included consultation and support from LCJP trainers to actualize this goal. This expansion reflects LCJP’s progress toward its vision of a world where restorative practices are the first approach for resolving crime and conflict. 

Building Statewide Standards of Training…

As Colorado leads the country in legal support for restorative justice, restorative justice programs within the state are tasked with establishing standards of best practices for the greater field. In August 2017, The Colorado Restorative Justice Council endorsed standards of training brought to the council by the Colorado Coalition of Restorative Justice Directors. (CCRJD transitioned to a 501(c)(3) in 2019, and is now the Colorado Coalition of Restorative Justice Practitioners, or CCRJP). The standards, which specify the learning objectives and pedagogical approach for 20-hour restorative justice facilitator trainings, are available on www.RJColorado.org to serve as a guide for every RJ program in Colorado. Created under the leadership of LCJP’s Community Restorative Justice Program Coordinator, Abby Whipple, the standards were formed as product of countless meetings of the CCRJD “Training Committee” between April 2015 and August 2017. The Training Committee consisted of six RJ program directors, and Abby served as the chair of this committee for the entire time the standards were being drafted, finalized and approved. She assumed the chair position for the Training Committee in April 2015, while serving as the Program Coordinator for the University of Colorado Restorative Justice Program (CURJ). She joined the LCJP staff shortly thereafter in October 2015. Abby’s experience at CURJ, which involved coordinating the high-volume RJ program that partnered with municipal and district courts, complimented the insights she gained working with restorative justice referrals from law enforcement at LCJP. Abby’s unique perspective, which she had from overseeing programs that served different types of cases and client demographics, positioned her to lead fellow RJ program directors from school, judicial and university contexts to create guidelines for facilitator trainings that can be utilized in any setting or context. Looking into the future for both Colorado and the nation, LCJP supports the expansion of policy and legislation that supports and strengthens RJ programs.

Empowering the Community with RJ Skills…

LCJP’s Community Restorative Justice Program is designed to empower members of the Longmont community to participate in the resolution of crime, power typically reserved in the US for judges and attorneys. In an effort to increase the community’s involvement in the resolution of crime, LCJP’s focus on training and developing volunteers has resulted in a steady increase in the number of conference roles filled by volunteers. As the traditional justice system’s organization around highly specialized roles reflects, resolving crime and conflict requires dedicated training, knowledge and experience. LCJP continually increased the rigor of Advanced Facilitator Training models that were established by staff in 2014 to bring the number of conference roles filled by volunteers to 80% in 2018 (with the other 20% filled by LCJP staff). The current training models better prepare volunteer facilitators for the challenges of complex and high-impact cases, and the 80% reflects that more volunteers are confident in their experience and ability to successfully facilitate LCJP’s most challenging cases. LCJP distinguishes itself as a volunteer program by fostering volunteers’ development of conflict resolution skills that they will ultimately use both in and out of the restorative justice conferences. As we strive to create a restorative world, skilled and dedicated volunteers reflect the ripple-effect of an increasingly restorative community in Longmont.

Securing a Bright Future with Social Venture Partners…

In 2019, Social Venture Partners of Boulder County selected LCJP as an investee of their prestigious “Catapult” program. The selection resulted from a rigorous application process lasting half a year and involving input from the entire LCJP staff and Board of Directors. As a result, LCJP will receive $35,000-$55,000 over the 3.5 year investment, along with 1,500-2,000 hours of consulting. This investment from Social Venture Partners will accentuate LCJP’s annual fundraising efforts. The years ahead will bring strategic growth to LCJP’s service offerings, as the organization pursues its vision: a world where people experience interconnectedness, are proactively accountable, and choose to transform conflict with justice that creates peace.

History: Restorative Practices in Schools

From 2010-2015, LCJP led an innovative Restorative Practices Schools (RPS) Program in Partnership with St. Vrain Valley School District. Read here to learn more about how this program elevated students as the co-creators of Restorative Culture in their schools, and the success of the approach as evidenced in the data.