The authors provide an examination of women veterans in eight veterans’ treatment court programs across the southern United States; they examine demographics, criminal histories, program requirements and experiences, and behavioral and mental health issues of the women participants in those VTCs.
Although the overall veteran, arrestee, and incarcerated populations have been decreasing, women as a percentage of the veteran population and those legal involved are on the rise. In fact, women are the fastest-growing cohort within the U.S. veteran population, and the women jail inmate population increased 15 percent from 2008 to 2018. Treatment programs targeting justice-involved individuals and/or veterans have also proliferated during the past decade. The current study examines women veterans in eight veterans’ treatment court (VTC) programs across the southern United States (three in Florida, two in North Carolina, and three in Texas) using data from the National Institute of Justice’s Multisite Examination of Veterans Treatment Courts. Specifically, the authors examine demographics, criminal histories, program requirements and experiences, and behavioral and mental health issues of the women participants in these VTCs. In addition to illustrating these aspects among women VTC participants, we conduct statistical comparisons to VTC participant counterparts who are men to determine any significant differences. Recommendations for addressing the unique nature and needs of women veterans in VTCs are provided based on these results. (Published Abstract Provided)