Are Victims’ Rights Honored in Veterans Courts? A Statewide Assessment of Law on the Books versus Law in Action

ABSTRACT

Veterans treatment courts provide alternative resolution of a wide variety of crimes, including crimes of victimization, for eligible veterans. These courts have been evaluated on multiple fronts, from eligibility to outcomes, yet almost no scholarly attention has been given to whether these courts incorporate victims’ rights into operations. This study of veterans treatment courts in one state employs content analysis, surveys, and interviews to examine these courts through a victims’ rights lens. The authors conclude that the courts omit victims’ rights from most of their procedures but seem amenable to adopting policy changes to improve responsiveness to victims’ needs.

KEYWORDS:

• Victim-s rights
• victim participation
• victim impact statement

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1. As of January 1, 2021, there were 25 VTCs in the State.

2. Several counties in the State have created additional VTCs since completion of this research.

3. Counties maintain their local rules at the local level, and all 21 sample VTCs make them available to the public on the internet.

4. Many VTCs publish handbooks, or guides, for veterans to help them understand VTC processes. See e.g., https://justiceforvets.org/resources/resource-library/sample-documents/.