Restorative Justice Up Close: First Person Accounts of an Approach That Works

edited by Sally Swarthout Wolf with a forward by Howard Zehr

I am proud to announce an edited volume including my essay about my Vicarious Restorative Justice circle with a surrogate offender who was formally incarcerated for crimes similar to the sexual assaults I experienced as a child will be available on February 3, 2026. Please consider purchasing this book through your independent bookstore.

I was introduced to restorative justice (RJ) through an organization that grew from a restorative justice group created by incarcerated men at MCI Norfolk. These men trained me to become a restorative justice facilitator, skills that I went on to use at MCI Framingham and Massachusetts Treatment Center. Many of the members of the the RJ program at MCI Norfolk continued their RJ work after their release. I have been honored to work with two of these men to provide consultation and trainings to organizations that would like to deepen their commitment to trauma informed interpersonal engagement.

When offered the opportunity by Ampersands Restorative Justice to participate in my own RJ circle to address sexual harm I experienced as a child and throughout my life I was intrigued but scared. I feared that I was walking into a situation in which I would be further harmed by a sexual predator. What happened instead was transformative, a catalyst for the deepest healing I have experienced.

Ampersands uses a model called Vicarious Restorative Justice. I was invited to be in circle with a formerly incarcerated person who had been imprisoned for crimes similar to the harms I experienced. I was able to ask this person why they sexually abused their children, how had that decision effected the rest of their lives, and how they transformed as a person since then. They asked what happened to me, how the abuse and assaults effected me and with tears brimming in their eyes told me how sad they were I was hurt and suffered through crippling depression and isolation as a result of sexual violence.

The essay included in this book chronicles my RJ journey as first an abolitionist and then a survivor through the lens of my circle process.

I am deeply moved to share my story in this anthology that will be a guide for educators, RJ facilitators and the judiciary.

Restorative Justice Up Close: First-Person Accounts of an Approach That Works Hardcover – February 3, 2026

by Sally Swarthout Wolf (Editor)