Vauhxx Booker intends to re-enter the restorative justice process he cut short earlier this year.
The agreement, filed in Monroe Circuit Court Monday, says if Booker completes the process, charges against him stemming from an incident last year at Lake Monroe will be dropped.
Last summer, Booker, who is Black, said he was nearly lynched by a group of white men as he was celebrating the Fourth of July at the lake. Two of his alleged attackers were charged with criminal confinement, battery and intimidation immediately following the incident, and the two sides agreed to try to settle the issue using restorative justice.
Restorative justice has not been used in Indiana to resolve a criminal case. It attempts to repair harm caused by a crime by bringing those involved in an incident together to discuss a resolution, usually through a mediator.
The Center for Community Justice in Elkhart was overseeing the process until Booker decided to end it this summer.
During an August news conference, Booker said he would not continue the process because he could not agree to signing a confidentiality agreement and having the charges against his alleged attackers dropped.
READ MORE: Vauhxx Booker: ‘I am not going to back down’
That decision led to charges being filed against Booker. Soon after, Kitty Liell, the attorney who had been representing him pro bono, said she could no longer afford to represent Booker for free.
Booker was awarded a public defender at his initial hearing, but Special Judge Lance Hamner later rescinded that representation because of a GoFundMe that had collected thousands of dollars for Booker to put toward medical bills, legal fees and other expenses that came from the incident.
Booker declined to comment Wednesday on why he decided to re-enter the restorative justice process.
The initial restorative justice agreement required both sides to participate. That won’t be the case moving forward.
If Booker meets the terms of the agreement, the charges filed against him – felony battery and misdemeanor trespass – will be dropped.
Attorneys for Sean Purdy and Jerry Cox, the two white men charged with attacking Booker, say their clients are still considering if they want to complete the process.
