The Veteran’s Behavioral Health Services Cascade: Addressing Unmet Needs Among Veterans in the Criminal Justice System

• In Event: Assessing the Impact of Procedural Practices, Social Control, and Economic Sanctions on Marginalized Communities

Abstract

Veterans in the United States have greater exposure to certain risk factors, such as post-traumatic stress disorder, that can contribute to criminal behavior. However, relatively little is known about challenges associated with providing behavioral health supports to Veterans involved in the criminal justice system (CJS). Recognizing the importance of “sustained research and evaluation” to improve responses to Veterans involved in the CJS, the Pennsylvania Senate tasked the Pennsylvania Commission on Sentencing to study Veterans involved in the CJS in Pennsylvania (Senate Resolution 196, adopted in June 2024). In this presentation, Commission staff introduce a new framework, the Veteran’s Behavioral Health Services Cascade, and illustrate how it can be used to identify gaps in behavioral health treatment for Veterans in the CJS and to develop inter-agency strategies to improve treatment. We identify and discuss factors that make providing a continuum of care for Veterans involved in the CJS more difficult than for the general population and those that make it easier. We detail the sequential steps and measures in the Cascade and provide an example from Veterans Treatment Courts. We make recommendations for data collection to inform the Cascade of Care and for improving responses to Veterans involved in the CJS.

Authors

• Noah Painter-Davis, Pennsylvania Commission on Sentencing / Pennsylvania State University

• Matthew Kleiman, Pennsylvania Commission on Sentencing

• Nicholas Goldrosen, Pennsylvania State University / Pennsylvania Commission on Sentencing