The National Institute of Corrections (NIC) announces the release of Veteran Intercepts in the Criminal Justice System: Minimizing Collateral Consequences for Veterans in the Criminal Justice System with Deflection, Diversion, and Intervention and the accompanying four-part Veteran Sequential Intercept Model (V-SIM) Webinar Series.

Veteran Intercepts in the Criminal Justice System

Veteran Intercepts in the Criminal Justice System is a collaboration between NIC, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, and the NIC-sponsored Justice-Involved Veterans Network. This effort reflects the original sequential intercept model (SIM) that was developed in the early 2000s by Mark Munetz, MD, and Patricia A. Griffin, PhD, along with Henry J. Steadman, PhD, of Policy Research Associates, Inc. The original intent of the sequential intercept model was to “envision a series of ‘points of interception’ or opportunities for an intervention to prevent individuals with mental illness from entering or penetrating deeper into the criminal justice system” (Munetz & Griffin, 2006). The V-SIM builds on prior efforts to adapt the SIM to the justice-involved veteran population.

Many justice-involved veterans are challenged by various forms and degrees of mental illness, substance abuse, and trauma from physical injuries (with traumatic brain injury being of particular note). Each decision point in the criminal justice system represents an opportunity to intercede at the lowest level possible and to minimize the collateral consequences of a veteran getting more deeply involved in the justice system. Veteran Intercepts in the Criminal Justice System is a tool for criminal justice practitioners, veteran advocates, and local governments that outlines options for strategies and resources for working with veterans at every step of the justice system.

Click Here to view this publication!

V-SIM Webinar Series

The V-SIM Webinar Series is a four-part series that provides an introduction and overview of the veteran intercept model along with deeper dives into each of the intercepts. The goal of the series is to introduce the publication, share examples of success in jurisdictions, and offer solutions to preventing veterans from having further involvement in the justice system.

If veterans with mental health and substance-use concerns get involved with the criminal justice system, it can result in complex and challenging situations that further complicate their path to recovery. However, agencies that recognize the distinctive qualities associated with military service and the abundant resources available to those who have served can significantly foster future success for veterans and may help prevent their further involvement in the justice system. The webinar series shows firsthand how governments and agencies throughout the country are devising and implementing thoughtful approaches to working with the veteran population.

Webinar Series Titles:

• Veteran Intercepts in the Criminal Justice System: Introduction and Overview of the Veteran Sequential Intercepts 0-5
• Veteran Intercepts in the Criminal Justice System Webinar Series: Intercepts 0-1
• Veteran Intercepts in the Criminal Justice System Webinar Series: Intercepts 2-3
• Veteran Intercepts in the Criminal Justice System Webinar Series: Intercepts 4-5

Click Here to view all 4 videos in this series!

Learn more about these and other veterans-specific resources, including podcasts, audiobooks, and televised broadcasts on the NIC Justice-Involved Veterans microsite.

NIC has established a broad array of networks designed to bring people together from a particular discipline within the larger criminal justice and corrections arenas. The newest NIC network to be established is the Gender Responsive Network. NIC sponsored a Gender Responsive Summit this past spring that brought together researchers, practitioners, community stakeholders, service providers, and NIC staff to discuss the future of gender responsive work with NIC. One of the recommendations was to create a Gender Responsive Network that will consist of those working with women in prison, in jails and in the community.

NIC is looking forward to creating a forum for those working with women to come together to share information and discuss pressing issues. Virtual listening sessions will be held this fall and winter 2023 to gather information and establish how this network will benefit your agency and facility.

That’s not how we do things around here. Anyone who has worked in corrections for a while knows these words signal apprehension for learning about things that are new or trying new approaches that challenge the norm. Sometimes the tried and true is the best approach, but at other times, a new way of doing things can bring about breakthroughs in thinking. Understanding how colleagues in other parts of the country or even other parts of the world approach problems can lead to better decision making.

To facilitate the corrections field’s exchange of ideas from a broader array of influences, the National Institute of Corrections has developed a new online collection of resources focused on international topics in corrections. These resources are ideal for state and local agencies that want fresh ideas to solving age-old problems. While cultural differences will exist, many ideas can be adapted for use with American justice-involved populations. Additionally, it may help professionals in the field develop a new cultural perspective for managing foreign individuals and international populations.

Currently, the collection points visitors to what may be some of the corrections field's most pressing issues. Specific topics include justice-involved women, prison and community corrections issues, organizational development, and international narcotics and law enforcement through links with the U.S. Department of State. The NIC Information Center also has made a number of e-books readily available through the collection.

New resources are being added to the collection regularly. Learn more on NIC's International Corrections webpage.

Facilitated dialogue is a voluntary process that brings together victims of a crime and the justice-involved individuals who have harmed them. It has been called by many names, including restorative justice dialogue, victim offender mediation, victim offender dialogue, and others. During these sessions, victims have the opportunity to address the trauma of their victimization and to ask questions and receive answers to which only the individuals who committed the offense can provide. Those who committed the crime have the opportunity to be accountable for their actions, to express remorse, and learn the full effect of their actions on the victims. Both parties can learn to find ways to promote healing and resolution.

The National Institute of Corrections (NIC) in partnership with the National Association of Victims Assistance in Corrections (NAVAC) recently developed a new curriculum and blended training that prepares dialogue facilitators for their roles. The new curriculum was designed using a combination of in-person training, synchronous virtual instructor-led training (VILT)/online sessions, and inter-session asynchronous assignments, which includes the review of materials like case studies, videos, scenarios, and enactments.

NIC’s training fills a critical gap for standardized facilitator dialogue training. While the first national standards for facilitated dialogue were developed by NAVAC in 2012, many states continue to develop and offer their own versions of training. Only 33 states currently have their own facilitated dialogue training, and that leaves remaining states to outsource training or cover the expense of sending staff to neighboring states to earn their certification.

NIC’s training was piloted in early 2023 and reviewed both online and in-person sections of the curriculum. The online portion was piloted on June 27-29, and the in-person session was held in Aurora, CO, on July 11-13. Participants of the pilot included 27 participants and represented 20 states. Only those agencies with existing facilitated dialogue programs were eligible to participate.

Next steps for the training include development of situational training for topics such as homicide, domestic violence, sex abuse, and working with minors as well as refresher courses for seasoned facilitators that address new topics or rarely occurring situations.

Across the nation, demand for facilitated dialogue is increasing, and while NIC’s training is currently being piloted with states that have their own training, NIC plans in the near future to support states without their own training with this federally sponsored alternative.

Over the past 3 years, the National Institute of Corrections (NIC) has worked collaboratively with Justice System Partners to review, modify, and redesign NIC’s Probation and Parole Executive Orientation curriculum to create and pilot a virtual Community Supervision Leadership Learning Lab. The lab includes the most up-to-date material needed to assist community corrections leaders in developing probation and parole agencies that can effectively implement evidence-based interventions.

The 9-month lab uses a combination of virtual connections, including virtual instructor-led trainings, self-paced and independent learning, and leadership coaching. The training includes 6 months of coaching to help participants develop a capstone project. The capstone project begins by helping participants identify, develop, and implement a new organizational change strategy within their agency and concludes with an in-person capstone project that provides participants an opportunity to grow their skills as leaders.

Beginning in 2022, the curriculum was piloted with 62 cross-positional leaders from three sites: Brazoria County Texas Community Supervision and Corrections Department (Adult Probation), Michigan Department of Corrections, and Kansas Parole Services. This pilot provided invaluable feedback with regard to the training’s curriculum content, mode of delivery for activities, practical assignments, the capstone project, and planning processes.

The trauma that lingers after a critical incident can be debilitating. It causes happy couples to terminate their marriages, imbalances emotionally stable people, and deprives people of sleep. On the other side of that trauma is hope. Interventions like post critical incident seminars (PCIS) help corrections staff find renewed hope and help them regain a positive outlook on life. First developed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in 1983, PCIS was later developed for use with first responders in South Carolina in 2000.

In 2018, PCIS became an official trademark of the South Carolina Law Enforcement Assistance Program, outlining the fundamental standards of PCIS events. It operates as a three-day event that helps corrections staff address ongoing mental health issues stemming from traumatic events experienced both on and off the job. It is not a cure-all but rather a single intervention in a broader plan for recovery.

The seminar begins with participants sharing their traumatic incident with the group. The next day, participants are placed into breakout groups to dive deeper into the effects of their traumatic experience. Now, they might engage in sessions in alignment with Critical Incident Stress Management Peer Support, complete mindfulness activities, or work with a trauma dog. Spouses and partners can attend PCIS alongside participating staff, not only to provide support but also to receive help with their own vicarious trauma. Mental health professionals work with participants outside of the group therapy sessions and breakouts to provide them with one-on-one help.

“What the PCIS does is offer various tools to work with,” says Karin Ho, director of the Division of Victim Services and Critical Incident Stress Management Peer Support Program with the South Carolina Department of Corrections. “We discuss normal trauma reactions. We talk about addiction issues. We talk about medications, very frankly about mental health, and the medication interventions that can be used or not used.

“And we also give them resiliency tools,” Ho says. “We discuss what [people] can do moving forward. Are [they] aware of meditation? Mindfulness drumming? Different things that may help [them] individually in…situations moving forward.”

Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing is one treatment that has become a key component of the program. It works by balancing the bilateral stimulation in the brain. As a person thinks about a traumatic experience, she moves her eyes to alleviate unpleasant reactions. Over time, she develops new connections in the brain.

Medical massage therapy is another key treatment. Professional massage therapists help participants reduce stress and relax their muscles to help them alleviate the physical pain and misalignments throughout the body that trauma can cause. Understanding the mind-body relationship can help participants realize how they may be carrying stress in their bodies without realizing the connection.

While PCIS doesn’t work for everyone, it has worked for many people.

Stephanie Tandarich, PCIS coordinator with the Missouri Department of Corrections, says that on a personal level, the program helped her navigate through multiple incidents that had previously caused her anxiety.

“Prior to my own PCIS experience, I tended to isolate myself when facing a stressful situation…. I now find myself sharing more of my experiences… [and] engaging in physical activity…to manage stress and maintain a healthier mindset.”

Other participants throughout the years have reported similar results. This information is beneficial for those who have not experienced the program. When curious observers see the program for themselves, they begin to understand and trust the process. Many are inspired to share their experience with others or implement the program or a variation of it with their own agencies. 

Ho was first introduced to PCIS, by Eric Skidmore, Director of the South Carolina Law Enforcement Assistance Program Team that provides services to law enforcement throughout South Carolina. After observing a PCIS that he hosted for first responders on the front-line, Ho realized how powerful PCIS could be for participants. It was such a powerful experience that she became convinced that the event needed to be made available to correctional staff.

In 2022, Meckenzie Hayes, manager of Trauma-Informed Employee Care in Missouri observed a PCIS event with the Missouri, State Highway Patrol. “After attending, it was clear to me that PCIS was an opportunity that we couldn’t ignore,” Hayes says. “I remember saying to my supervisor, “We can’t NOT do this!” A short time later, after she had reviewed all the materials, I received a sticky note on my desk that simply said, ‘Let’s get started.’”

Today, 13 states provide some form of PCIS for emergency response staff. Many of these programs are for law enforcement, fire fighters, and emergency medical services professionals. South Carolina and Missouri are the only two programs specifically designed for correctional staff.

Through networking and technical assistance from the National Institute of Corrections, South Carolina and Missouri have worked together to implement and improve implementation of PCIS in their respective states.

“The collaborative spirit demonstrated by South Carolina's team and the shared exchange of best practices have been incredibly beneficial for us,” Tandarich says. “Working together has not only enriched our PCIS initiative but has also established a strong foundation for ongoing learning and improvement.”

“We anticipated our biggest challenge being buy-in…but it really hasn’t been,” Hayes says. “Corrections staff are starving for the long overdue support and acknowledgement of the difficult and often traumatic work they do each and every day... We have never received a shortage of applications.”

Now in its second year, Missouri PCIS says there have been numerous benefits for staff, including the improved mental health of those who participate, the improved relationships that participants have with their colleagues and families, and the cultural shift that the entire organization experienced from staff sharing with others how PCIS has helped them. The program has also led the Missouri Department of Corrections to increase networking with mental health agencies, clinical providers, and law enforcement in the community, which has helped raise awareness among these groups about the role of corrections as a partner in first response.

Since South Carolina’s program began, Ho has worked with NIC to deliver a series of webinars on PCIS, including Promoting Wellness and Resiliency in Correctional Staff and Post Critical Incident Seminar: Implementation & Best Practices in a Correctional Setting. Missouri has also presented with South Carolina at national conferences.

Holly Busby is the deputy director of the National Institute of Corrections (NIC). She has had an expansive career in criminal justice, serving over 30 years in a variety of roles from deputy sheriff to victim services and child protection social worker. All this includes a variety of roles in pretrial, probation, and parole services within Dodge and Olmsted Community Corrections, a two-county community corrections system in the state of Minnesota.

“The variety of positions that I’ve held has really shaped how I view the work of the institute,” Busby says. “I worked with people to help them identify and make the changes that they need…to repair harm to victims, to heal relationships with their family, to address substance use disorders, to get the kind of treatment that they need to keep them[selves] out of the system.

“All of those experiences,” Busby says, “all of those different people I’ve met with at different and challenging times in their lives really shaped who I am and how I see that the system can have a very positive impact. It can change lives. I’ve seen it happen.”

For the past 50 years, divisions at NIC have worked collaboratively to address the needs of professionals who work with justice-involved adults throughout the span of the criminal justice system, from law enforcement and the courts to corrections, including probation and parole. It’s this collaborative aspect of NIC that makes Busby so passionate about her work and that of the institute. She says it’s an opportunity to apply all of the experiences in her career to help others who are helping people in the system.

Busby first joined NIC through an Intergovernmental Personnel Act agreement and served as a correctional program specialist with the NIC Academy Division. Within two years, she joined NIC full time. Taking on higher-level positions, Busby served as chief of the NIC Community Services Division and then as deputy director of the agency. Today, she oversees the management of NIC’s internal operations and supports the division chiefs and the work of each division.

“As deputy director, I want to support NIC’s existing goals of increasing staffing, increasing NIC budgetary funding, and expanding services to federal, state, tribal, and local criminal justice agencies and practitioners,” Busby says.

Expanded services include (1) creating resources to help jurisdictions improve outcomes for people with mental health and substance use disorders, (2) helping corrections practitioners learn how to make better use of data, (3) facilitating the expansion of the use of peer support programs, and (4) expanding opportunities for people with lived experience to inform the development of innovative corrections programs in partnership with criminal justice practitioners.

Personally, Busby is also generally concerned with NIC’s well-being. “It’s really important to me to address the internal operation challenges that NIC has, including expanding our use of technology and seeking out more modern methods to standardize and automate our administrative processes,” she says.

Planned improvements to NIC’s customer service is one example of how new technology will be applied. Developers have been asked to create software that streamlines how customers request technical assistance. Replacing an old system of email and spreadsheets, the new system will allow customers to make requests and receive response plans in a central location. Busby hopes the system will benefit customers and employees alike, because it should alleviate much of the administrative work that can impede employees’ ability to do their best work.

Using technology to collect and analyze data is another goal. Busby hopes NIC can use the insights that data can bring to better anticipate and evaluate the needs of criminal justice agencies.

With less than a year in office, Busby says that so far the most rewarding part of being deputy director has been her ability to work with passionate people, others who are committed to the mission and vision of NIC and devoted to work collectively to improve the field of criminal justice and the lives of individuals and families who have been affected.

“[NIC employees] are some of the most resilient people I have ever worked with,” Busby says. “I love the people who are NIC. I love the institute and our mission. And I respect and learn a lot from our constituents and stakeholders. It is an absolute privilege to get to work with all these great people, and I’m committed to doing my part to help NIC prepare for another 50 years of service to the country.”