Ex-Pentagon Chiefs Help Launch Study Into Why 1 in 3 American Vets End Up in Jail

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - Former US Defense Department leaders and a criminal justice group launched a commission focused on understanding why veterans are more likely to get arrested when compared to the rest of the US population.

"The Council on Criminal Justice (CCJ) today announced the launch of a national commission to examine why so many military veterans land in jail and prison and produce recommendations for evidence-based policy changes that enhance safety, health, and justice," the CCJ said in a press release on Tuesday.

Former Pentagon chief Chuck Hagel will chair the 15-member commission, which will include former US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta along with other top military, veterans, and criminal justice leaders.

Roughly one third of veterans report having been arrested at least once in their lives, compared to fewer than one fifth of non-veterans, the release added.

"Service-related trauma and other legacies of deployment push too many veterans on a path toward incarceration," Hegel was quoted as saying in the release. "We can and must do more to understand and interrupt that trajectory."

The group, citing the latest national survey, said a total of 181,500 veterans were currently in US prisons and jails.