Coatesville Veterans Affairs Medical Center

Veterans Justice Outreach

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has committed to preventing incarceration and reducing recidivism among Veterans through the development of the Veterans Justice Outreach (VJO) Program.

The purpose of the VJO initiative is to avoid unnecessary criminalization of mental illness and extended incarceration among Veterans by ensuring that eligible Veterans in contact with the criminal justice system have access to VA mental health and substance abuse services.

The Veterans Justice Outreach Program assists:

• Courts and Attorneys: Develops and implement Veterans Courts and provides information and education about Veterans' issues including PTSD and TBI and services available.
• Law Enforcement: Provides education to local law enforcement about Veterans' issues and strategies to help work with Veterans.
• Correctional Facilities: Develops communication with correctional facilities to identify Veterans who are incarcerated and engage Veterans in available services upon their release.

The Veterans Justice Outreach Specialist:

• Serves Veterans of all eras
• Assesses Veteran's health care needs, identifies appropriate VA and non-VA services
• Refers and links Veterans to comprehensive health care services
• Communicates essential information (attendance, progress, treatment testing, discharge plan) with Veteran consent
• Functions as a court team member
• Provides evidence-based treatment for court-monitored Veterans

The Veterans Justice Outreach Specialist does not:

• Perform forensic psychiatric/psychological evaluations for the court
• Accept custody
• Guarantee program acceptance
• Write lengthy court reports, or complete diversion paperwork