Veterans & Justice
Over the past four decades, too many veterans have returned home from war only to end up in our prisons and jails. This is often a result of their combat experience and our country’s inability to address the negative consequences associated with it. Returning veterans began playing a central role in the rise of the U.S. prison population following the Vietnam era; in 1986, 24 percent of all Federal prison inmates and 21 percent of those in State prisons were veterans. Early data indicates this pattern is repeating itself now as men and women return home from Iraq and Afghanistan. It doesn’t have to be this way.
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The Consequences of War: A Veteran’s Story
- Glenna Tinney, MSW, Apr 9, 2012
- In this article, Glenna Tinney discusses her personal observation of how war affected a family member and how that same experience plays out today with veterans.
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Military Suicides: Those We Might Yet Save
- Penny Coleman, Jan 24, 2012
- When [veterans'] lives spiral out of control, many of them will end up behind bars. For others, the urge will be towards self-destruction. They will risk and abuse their bodies, and far too many will…
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Collateral Damage: Incarceration of Veterans
- Michael J. Fitzpatrick, NAMI & Tracy Velázquez, JPI, Nov 11, 2011
- One of the most serious and under-reported problems for veterans is involvement in the criminal justice system. While each individual’s path to prison has been different, a frequent thread is…
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Finding Options for Returning Veterans
- Ben Gales and Duncan MacVicar, California Veterans Legal Task Force, Oct 28, 2011
- Veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress, traumatic brain injury, alcohol and drug abuse, depression, and other mental health issues, are at great risk of becoming justice involved.
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Is Data Doing Justice to our Veterans?
- Guy Gambill, Aug 16, 2011
- As the next in our series of essays, articles and stories that focus on veterans and justice, this piece looks at the lack of accurate data around veterans' justice involvement.
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A Mother’s Struggle for Justice: How Failed Systems Jailed My Son Steven
- Rhonda Jordal, Apr 4, 2011
- The first in a special series on Veterans & Justice. Rhonda Jordal tells of their ordeal when their son, Steven, spent 635 days in jail as a result of untreated PTSD and TBI.