Crimeless society is a myth. The most obvious effect of crime is the victim suffers the resultant social, legal and psychological problems. Adversarial system of criminal justice model has not served the crime victims well. The upsurge in the concern for crime victims is a relatively new issue in criminal justice, as the Movement for victims’ rights started. Restorative justice is a new movement in the fields of victimology and criminology. Restorative justice is not just about healing the victim’s wounds; it is also about restoring the offenders to their previous status as law abiding individuals and repairing the harm done to the interpersonal relationships and the community. A central premise of restorative justice is that victims, offenders and the affected communities are all key stakeholders in the restorative process. It is a powerful way of addressing not only the material and physical injuries caused by crime, but also the social, psychological and relational injuries as well. This paper highlights the socio-psycho legal aspects of restorative justice for crime victims.

Crimeless society is a myth. In fact, there can be no society without the problems of crimes and criminals. Crime happens in many forms and has different effects. There are many categories of crimes and many genera of offenders in all age groups, among both sexes, in all the strata of the society. Crime symbolizes a major form of conflict in the society. It is the obligation of the state to grapple with crimes and criminals.

Governments have legal systems as an apparatus to enforce the standards of conduct necessary to protect the individuals and the society. The legal system of any nation is intended to be a self-contained legal entity with authority to provide for its own system of laws. The criminal justice system operates in accordance with specific criminal statutes. Criminal justice system operates by apprehending, prosecuting, convicting and sentencing those members of the society who violate the basic rule of law. The justification for punishment becomes varyingly relevant and significant at different stages of criminal justice process. The sentencing has to ultimately determine the quantum and nature of punishment to suffice the ends of justice.

Law Review Journal, Socio-Psycho Legal Aspects, Restorative Justice, Crime Victims