Restorative Justice

It appears that many people do not regard road traffic offences as constituting a crime. In addition, it seems that most people do not realise that if found guilty of certain offences, they will have a criminal record.Reckless driving includes unlawful and unsafe driving with a disregard for the safety of other motorists and pedestrians. Individuals who engage in reckless driving are aware of the risks involved with their actions behind the wheel but continue to drive in a dangerous manner. Aggressive driving is when an individual commits a combination of moving traffic offences that endangers other persons or property - Many of the people who are most aggressive on the roads appear to be people to whom aggression – and aggression to a criminal extent – is normal. Elizayo's Program focuses on teaching prosocial cognitive and emotional skills as well as values that are associated with courteous and safe driving. The program is a multi-faceted cognitive behavioural education program that focuses on training participants in problem-solving skills with the aim to develop participants’ prosocial cognitive and emotional skills as well as values that are associated with courteous and safe driving, to prevent future reoffending. The program is offered over 12 sessions and the diversion program target group is ;Adult offenders with traffic and driving violations. We will also be offering the program to ;Employed drivers or youth preparing to obtain a driver’s license

Animal abuse has become increasingly recognised as a serious crime, as well as an indicator of human-directed violence. Studies have shown that people who commit a single known act of animal abuse are also more likely to commit other criminal offences compared to non-abusers.Furthermore, current evidence shows that animal mistreatment by youths is linked with general criminality, interpersonal violence, and gang-related activities. Accurately identifying and appropriately responding to animal abuse not only allows for early interventions but may also act as a predictor of long-term behavioural problems in individual cases. At Elizayo, we want to address the scourge of animal abuse and neglect in South African communities. We do not believe that imprisonment is the answer for all offenders, but rather holding them accountable for their offences through a program where their negative behaviour could be positively impacted. The program aims to prevent recidivism of animal abuse offenders to impact positively on possible future violence against persons or animals. The program is presented over  10 Sessions of 1.5 hours each. 15 participants per group.

Driving under the influence (DUI) is a major threat to road safety in South Africa  58% of road traffic fatalities involve alcohol as Alcohol produces significant impairment in driving performance. Present interventions do not seem to impact positively as many individuals continue to drink and drive even after being convicted of a DUI offence. Interventions focusing on preventing recidivism is sorely needed. Our  program aims to confront offenders with issues related to driving under the influence. and preventing re-offending in the future.  The program is itended for  Offenders 18 and over who have been arrested for DUI with a BAC of 0.05 g or higher.   #Avoid drinking and driving; #Increase their knowledge of alcohol and its effects on the brain and driving skills #Control their thoughts, feelings and actions #Promote safe driving

South Africa has a culture of violence, which needs to be seen and understood in the context of an extremely violent past. A culture of violence means  a majority of children and young people grow up in an environment in which violence is part of daily life. Victims of violence are often violent towards others, and risk being caught up in cycles of violence. Young people who have been victims of violence are six times more likely to commit a crime than those who have not been victimized.  These Victims become the offenders which this program targets.  Participants are able to decrease Interpersonal violence incidences through a  process of change in thinking and behaviors.  They  are able to identify Thinking errors and are able to adapt faulty patterns of thinking that are self-defeating and are able to recognize their specific thoughts, feelings and behaviors which can exacerbate feelings of anger and lead to aggressive behaviour. They acquire and use coping strategies to prevent or reduce their aggressive behaviour .Participants are able to decrease Interpersonal violence incidences through a  process of change in thinking and behaviors.  They  are able to identify Thinking errors and are able to adapt faulty patterns of thinking that are self-defeating and are able to recognize their specific thoughts, feelings and behaviors which can exacerbate feelings of anger and lead to aggressive behaviour. They acquire and use coping strategies to prevent or reduce their aggressive behaviour

The main components of the Program include

#Behavioural component:  skill streaming to teach pro-social behavior to participants who have deficiency in or who lack these competencies, which is theoretically grounded in social learning theory. This serves to replace the out-of-control destructive behaviours with constructive pro-social behavior

#Affective component: Anger control   is designed to help reduce the frequency of anger arousal in those who are chronically aggressive, and to provide means of self-control when anger is aroused. While skill streaming is designed to teach what one should do in problematic situations, anger control training teaches what one should not do.

#Cognitive component: Moral reasoning. The primary purpose is to raise the individual's level of moral reasoning, thus enabling them to make more mature decisions in social situations.

The concept of social problem solving is closely aligned with adaptive behaviour, including communication skills, practical daily living skills, community, interpersonal, and socialisation skills that people acquire to function in daily life.  Inadequate social problem‐solving skills associated with impulsivity and aggression have been implicated in offending behaviour. Research has demonstrated that alterations in criminal thinking are associated with changes in criminal behaviour. High-risk offenders generally lack the cognitive, behavioural, and social skills necessary for success as productive members of society. These skill deficits may undermine the habitual offender’s efforts to remain in society, even after periods of incarceration. The ‘Think’ project combines a cognitive restructuring theory with a cognitive skills theory to create an innovative and integrated curriculum designed to help individuals in the juvenile and adult justice systems by taking control of their thinking. The Project aims to  assist offenders in the justice system to take control of their lives through their thinking and is presented over 24 sessions of 1 hour each

Maintenance is the obligation to provide another person, for example a minor, with housing, food, clothing, education, and medical care, or with the means that are necessary for providing the person with these essentials. Elizayo’s offers a diversion program that focus on reversing the  non-payment of agreed maintenance as per court orders and enabling cooperative parenting to enable fathers to better interact with their child’s mother and become Responsible and Involved Non-Resident Fathers.

There are many reasons cited by  maintenance defaulters as to why they are not honoring payments.  Whether a father believes his  rights are being impinged on [i.e. visitation, misuse of maintenance etc.]- or just being a father who does not care – they need to realise that the rights of their children supersedes any rights they  think they have.

The Program examines the discriminatory attitudes and behavioral patterns that encourage many men and boys to be violent and reckless - they develop skills and strategies to reduce the resulting harm as well as prevent its perpetuation.  The Program aims to empower young people, to prevent, avoid, and defend against violence and reckless behavior   as wel  as  challenge assumptions about personal identity, gender roles, and power imbalances that lie at the root of much interpersonal violence and reckless behavior. 12   sessions