Reliability and Validity in Veterans Treatment Court Evaluations

• In Event: Ethical Issues in Veterans Treatment Courts

Abstract

Veterans Treatment Courts (VTCs) are the most recent specialty court incarnation and are currently operating in the majority of states due to increased levels of criminal justice system involvement among veterans across the country. The general mission and operation of VTCs are in line with that of other specialized courts: divert eligible offenders from the traditional criminal justice system to nontraditional channels of justice and mandate appropriate treatment and services (e.g., mental health and substance abuse treatment, housing services) to address the underlying causes of crime, in an effort to eliminate or reduce future crime and contact with the system. From a scientific vantage point, however, this growth is troubling because little is known about VTCs in general, let alone evidence regarding their impact. A few VTCs across the country have collected data and reported positive results, however, most of these reports utilized self-reported court data and/or anecdotal evidence and did not control for other important factors related to substance abuse abatement, improvement of mental health outcomes, and/or recidivism. Quality research evaluations rely on quality data and measures from multiple sources. Therefore it is imperative that jurisdictions strive to collect data that is reliable, valid, objective, and functional. Data also need to come from all entities involved in the treatment and supervision aspects of the court.

Author

• Richard Hartley, University of Texas at San Antonio