We Are All in This Together

Veterans Treatment Court personnel, from left, Probation Officer Keith Taylor; Assistant District Attorney Jenna Smith; Veterans Court Coordinator Matt Peifer; Judge James Bradley; Deputy District Attorney Salena Jones; and District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer

U.S. veterans are among the proudest and most noble servicemen and women in the world. They serve their nation with honor and dedication, sacrificing and suffering much to defend our freedom. Sadly, many of these Americans leave for war strong and able-bodied, but return with debilitating physical and mental issues. These issues, along with other challenges of reintegrating into civilian life, often lead to an intersection with civilian law enforcement.

According to Justice For Vets, more than half of the 2.6 million U.S. servicemembers deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan return with mental health conditions related to their service. One in six struggle with addiction, and one in five suffer from PTSD or major depression. 320,000 veterans from these conflicts suffer from a traumatic brain injury. Many seek to self-medicate with alcohol and substance abuse, often leading them down a destructive path.

Currently, there are approximately 700,000 vets are in the criminal justice system, with many incarcerated for crimes related to their injuries and conditions. While veterans should and must be held to the same standards regarding civil law, many cities and states are experimenting with new Veteran Treatment Courts, a veteran-only option for helping people find the help they need, stop the cycle of law enforcement involvement, and truly improve their lives and the lives of their families.

November, 2022. The Veterans Treatment Court, founded in 2011, recently graduated three program participants, the first cohort since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

We are all in this together … Veterans Court is one of five specialty courts offered in Delaware County that work to divert those with usually minor offenses away from incarceration and into treatment or programs in the hopes that they are able to rejoin society with a better support system and without the stigma of a conviction attached to their names.

Returning to normalcy … With the three most recent graduates, the Veterans Treatment Court now has 10 active enrollees. The total alternate court caseload tends to top out at about 50 because it allows the teams handling those cases to provide the kind of wrap-around services the program members require. This includes regular meetings as a team to discuss how members are doing, meeting with the judge every other week, meeting with probation officers weekly, and caseworker checkins from the VA.

While alternate courts statewide saw diminished capacities during the pandemic, it now appears to be on the upswing. One crucial component to those courts that has been missing is also coming back; In-person hearings where participants can sit down together and talk, provide encouragement and generally socialize with people going through the same thing they are.

Another unique component to the Veteran’s Court is a mentor program, which was also affected during the pandemic. The court is always actively looking for veterans in the community to be involved and pair with a veteran participant to act as a courtroom advocate and resource point.

Looking ahead … The treatment court is also looking to connect veterans with law enforcement before they break the law, similar to the county’s mobile mental health crisis intervention team. The idea of a “veteran response team” has already been employed in surrounding counties and states that bring together community treatment professionals, Veterans Affairs professionals and law enforcement members with crisis intervention training that have served in the military.

Putting service members with that training into situations where they can speak the same language to someone experiencing crisis, or make a connection on a veteran level, helps to defuse a situation before it becomes a crime.