Canadian Retailer - Store 2017 - 60

CRIMINAL REHABILITATION
EFFECTS OF RESTORATIVE JUSTICE

$4.6 billion

The average amount of loss per year that the
Canadian retail industry's hit by.

49%

The percentage of annual loss attributable to
external theft.

0.2%

The recidivism rates
to date at Wal-Mart
stores using the
education program,
versus the norm of
60 to 80 per cent.

ticipated. I sometimes hesitate to give people those
numbers, because typically don't believe it. Education really works and helps change the landscape."

85%

The estimated reduction in time spent dealing
with shoplifters. In addition, law enforcement
agencies experienced a 40 to 60 per cent
reduction in calls, translating into a savings of
1,800 man hours.

Anderson also served as a facilitator in a restorative justice program in Victoria, and says, "In my experience, we didn't have repeat offenders that went
through it."

Reducing drain on resources

A CEC-commissioned study also showed an
85 per cent reduction in time spent dealing with
shoplifters. In addition, law enforcement agencies
experienced a 40 to 60 per cent reduction in calls.
"The assistant police chief in Arlington Police Department for example reported a 40 per cent-plus
reduction in calls which translated into a saving
of 1,800 man hours," Huntsman claims.
RCC is now working to make changes to the
Canadian Criminal Code that will allow retailers to
access restorative justice resources for adult shoplifters, says Stephen O'Keefe, consultant and RCC
advisor. "We know criminal prosecution doesn't
work for shoplifters and hasn't in a long time. Statistics show that the rate of recidivism is extremely
low with restorative justice, but extremely high
with criminal prosecu"THE ASSISTANT POLICE CHIEF IN tion. That's why retailARLINGTON POLICE DEPARTMENT ers are exploring the
FOR EXAMPLE REPORTED A 40
use of restorative justice
PER CENT-PLUS REDUCTION IN
as an alternative."
CALLS WHICH TRANSLATED INTO
To that end, RCC has
A SAVING OF 1,800 MAN HOURS."
put forward a recom- DARRELL HUNTSMAN
mendation to the MinisCorrective Education Company
ter of Justice to update
the Criminal Code. The hope is to enable retailers
to make their own judgment on prosecuting first
time adult offenders or offer the restorative justice option. "Restorative justice has been in place
a long time for juveniles and is managed by the
police. Some retailers already participate in those,"
O'Keefe notes. "But the program does not cover
adults. We want to make restorative justice available for any retailer who wants to leverage it."
"The Criminal Code is a tricky piece," says
Jesse Anderson, Regional Operations Manager,
Alberta and Saskatchewan for ASAP Secured
in Calgary. A former loss prevention leader with
Hudson's Bay Company, Anderson has long been
an advocate for restorative justice. "If the only
way to vet a person is through the police, you can
see how frustrating that can be for retailers."
60 |

CANADIAN RETAILER

| THE LOSS PREVENTION ISSUE

Providing the restorative option

One area that needs to be addressed is the availability of restorative justice programs in Canada, Anderson says. "Some provinces have programs, others like
Alberta have none."
Beyond the legal implications, a restorative justice
option can improve in-store efficiency, O'Keefe says.
Generally speaking, it can reduce processing times
from three hours (spent on waiting for police to arrive)
to less than half an hour. If the person does not fulfill
the agreement, the retailer then has the right to press
charges for the original crime. "As soon as they enter
the agreement, the person is no longer an offender.
They are now a student who will walk away with a very
clear understanding of the significance of their actions," O'Keefe says.
However, those retailers unfamiliar with restorative justice need to be educated on the process, he
adds. "They often confuse restorative justice with diversion. Diversion happens after a person is turned
over to the police for charging. The criminal court
system may then divert them to a program based on
certain conditions. With restorative justice, the police
and the courts are not involved and the shoplifter is
not on record as a criminal."
Anderson says there was a pushback from retailers
during his work in the area because of the perceived
costs. "Many felt it was easier to send them through
the courts. They didn't want to see that you could support the community more and deter things more versus the court system."
There are undeniable benefits to be gained, Anderson believes. "First I don't believe it's worth the time
to pay investigators to show up at courts where they
might have 100 cases going. Second, you don't want
people coming back as a liability."
As part of its ongoing efforts to improve restorative
justice access, the retail loss prevention community is
working with certain jurisdictions to develop pilot projects with retailers, O'Keefe reports. "They will be able
to put adult shoplifters through the education program.
It will be interesting to see the results from that."

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