A Hero's Welcome? Exploring the Prevalence and Problems of Military Veterans in the Arrestee Population

Michael White; Philip Mulvey; Andrew M. Fox; David Choate

doi:10.1080/07418825.2011.560890

A Hero's Welcome? Exploring the Prevalence and Problems of Military Veterans in the Arrestee Population

Michael White, Philip Mulvey, Andrew M. Fox, David Choate

Violence Prevention and Community Safety, Center for

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

63 Scopus citations

Abstract

The potential for veterans to end up in the criminal justice system as a result of physical and psychological problems that may be combat-related has generated much interest, illustrated most recently by the development of specialized veterans' courts. However, little is known about how often veterans are arrested and incarcerated, the nature of their problems, or the extent to which their military service has contributed to their criminality. Using interview data from 2,102 arrestees booked in Maricopa County (AZ) during 2009, this paper examines the problems and prior experiences of arrested military veterans and compares veteran and non-veteran arrestees along a range of measures. Results indicate that veterans comprise 6.3% of the arrestee population, and that more than 50% of veterans report suffering from at least one combat-related problem including physical injury, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), other mental health problems, and substance abuse. Multivariate analysis indicates that veteran arrestees differ from non-veterans on a number of key measures, most notably more frequent arrests for violent offenses and greater use of crack cocaine and opiates. The paper concludes with a discussion of implications for the potential link between military service and criminality as well as for criminal justice policy and practice.

Original language	English (US)
Pages (from-to)	258-286
Number of pages	29
Journal	Justice Quarterly
Volume	29
Issue number	2
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1080/07418825.2011.560890
State	Published - Apr 2012

Keywords

combat-related problems and crime
military and crime
veterans and crime

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Pathology and Forensic Medicine
Law

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10.1080/07418825.2011.560890

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title = "A Hero's Welcome? Exploring the Prevalence and Problems of Military Veterans in the Arrestee Population",

abstract = "The potential for veterans to end up in the criminal justice system as a result of physical and psychological problems that may be combat-related has generated much interest, illustrated most recently by the development of specialized veterans' courts. However, little is known about how often veterans are arrested and incarcerated, the nature of their problems, or the extent to which their military service has contributed to their criminality. Using interview data from 2,102 arrestees booked in Maricopa County (AZ) during 2009, this paper examines the problems and prior experiences of arrested military veterans and compares veteran and non-veteran arrestees along a range of measures. Results indicate that veterans comprise 6.3% of the arrestee population, and that more than 50% of veterans report suffering from at least one combat-related problem including physical injury, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), other mental health problems, and substance abuse. Multivariate analysis indicates that veteran arrestees differ from non-veterans on a number of key measures, most notably more frequent arrests for violent offenses and greater use of crack cocaine and opiates. The paper concludes with a discussion of implications for the potential link between military service and criminality as well as for criminal justice policy and practice.",

keywords = "combat-related problems and crime, military and crime, veterans and crime",

author = "Michael White and Philip Mulvey and Fox, {Andrew M.} and David Choate",

note = "Funding Information: Despite recent media and legislative attention, there is little definitive research to assess the prevalence of veterans in jails and prisons, or the extent to which their combat-related problems have led to their incarceration. This study seeks to address these gaps by examining veteran status, combat-related problems and criminality among 2,102 recently booked arrestees in Maricopa County, Arizona. Data for the current study come from the AARIN. The AARIN project in Maricopa County was originally established in 1987 under the auspices of the Drug Use Forecasting (DUF) program, and later the Arrestee Drug Abuse Program (ADAM); both sponsored by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) to monitor drug use trends, treatment needs, and at-risk behavior among recently booked arrestees. The program involved collecting survey data and urine specimens from recently booked arrestees in 35 sites across the USA. In January 2004, ADAM operations were suspended by NIJ due to federal spending constraints. A few jurisdictions sought to continue to fund the program through the use of local funds. Maricopa County was one of those sites, and with funding provided by the Maricopa County Managers Office, the AARIN program was re-established in 2007.",

year = "2012",

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doi = "10.1080/07418825.2011.560890",

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AU - Mulvey, Philip

AU - Fox, Andrew M.

AU - Choate, David

N1 - Funding Information: Despite recent media and legislative attention, there is little definitive research to assess the prevalence of veterans in jails and prisons, or the extent to which their combat-related problems have led to their incarceration. This study seeks to address these gaps by examining veteran status, combat-related problems and criminality among 2,102 recently booked arrestees in Maricopa County, Arizona. Data for the current study come from the AARIN. The AARIN project in Maricopa County was originally established in 1987 under the auspices of the Drug Use Forecasting (DUF) program, and later the Arrestee Drug Abuse Program (ADAM); both sponsored by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) to monitor drug use trends, treatment needs, and at-risk behavior among recently booked arrestees. The program involved collecting survey data and urine specimens from recently booked arrestees in 35 sites across the USA. In January 2004, ADAM operations were suspended by NIJ due to federal spending constraints. A few jurisdictions sought to continue to fund the program through the use of local funds. Maricopa County was one of those sites, and with funding provided by the Maricopa County Managers Office, the AARIN program was re-established in 2007.

PY - 2012/4

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N2 - The potential for veterans to end up in the criminal justice system as a result of physical and psychological problems that may be combat-related has generated much interest, illustrated most recently by the development of specialized veterans' courts. However, little is known about how often veterans are arrested and incarcerated, the nature of their problems, or the extent to which their military service has contributed to their criminality. Using interview data from 2,102 arrestees booked in Maricopa County (AZ) during 2009, this paper examines the problems and prior experiences of arrested military veterans and compares veteran and non-veteran arrestees along a range of measures. Results indicate that veterans comprise 6.3% of the arrestee population, and that more than 50% of veterans report suffering from at least one combat-related problem including physical injury, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), other mental health problems, and substance abuse. Multivariate analysis indicates that veteran arrestees differ from non-veterans on a number of key measures, most notably more frequent arrests for violent offenses and greater use of crack cocaine and opiates. The paper concludes with a discussion of implications for the potential link between military service and criminality as well as for criminal justice policy and practice.

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A Hero's Welcome? Exploring the Prevalence and Problems of Military Veterans in the Arrestee Population

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Keywords

ASJC Scopus subject areas

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