Victim Offender Dialogue Fiscal Year Grant

The Victim Offender Dialogue Program Grants aim to provide funding for nonprofit organizations facilitating restorative justice dialogues between crime victims and offenders. With a total of $2 million available over two years, these grants support the creation of safe environments for personal healing and accountability. By empowering victims and encouraging offenders to express remorse, this initiative fosters empathy, responsibility, and healing within California's justice system.

Purpose
The purpose of the Victim Offender Dialogue Program Grants is to provide grants to eligible nonprofit organizations to provide facilitation services within the CDCR VOD program. The funding is designed to help maintain and increase the number of facilitators to sustain quality and restorative justice opportunities for California crime victims.
Description
This project will provide $1 million in grants per year for two years ($2 million total) to eligible nonprofit organizations to provide facilitation services within the CDCR VOD program. The Victim-Offender Dialogue (VOD) is a victim-centered, offender-sensitive facilitated preparation and dialogue process typically involving victims or the surviving family members, the offender who committed the offense and a facilitator. VOD supports personal justice and healing by empowering victims to meet with the offender in a safe and secure environment and address the personal impacts of violent crimes. VOD also encourages interested offenders to express remorse, develop empathy and accept full responsibility for the harm caused to the victims and their family. The VOD facilitator will arrange individual preparatory meetings over the course of several months with the victim and offender separately to prepare them for the face-to-face meeting.