Veterans Treatment Court (VTC) & Military Diversion (MD)
Veterans Treatment Court is a treatment program for Veterans and Active Duty servicemembers with mental health conditions.
What is the process?
About
Qualifying veterans who have entered the criminal justice system as a result of traumatic experiences they endured while in the military, may be eligible to participate in Veterans Treatment Court (VTC). This is a rigorous 15-18 month program of supervised probation which includes treatment, counseling, and regular court appearances. Several agencies, such as the Superior Court, the Sheriff’s Office, Probation, Mental Health, the District Attorney’s Office, the Public Defender’s Office and Veterans Services collaborate with the Veterans Administration and trained volunteer veteran mentors, with the shared goal of rehabilitating the veteran and reducing recidivism.
Who is eligible?
Each participant is accepted on a case-by-case basis.
Important:Having a case moved to a VTC must usually be done through a court order from the judge in the case, and not by contacting the VTC directly. If you are a veteran and have a criminal case, please consult with your attorney to find out whether you can participate in a VTC.
VTCs accept all military branches – including reserves and the National Guard. Eligibility requirements vary by county, but most VTCs accept certain types of felony or misdemeanor cases and require participants to:
- Have served in the military,
- Plead guilty in a criminal case,
- Be experiencing Post Traumatic Stress Disorders (PTSD), Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI), Military Sexual Trauma (MST), substance or other diagnosed disorders, and
- Agree to participate in a 15 - 18-month program.
When and where is this service offered?
Upon being accepted into Veterans Treatment Court, more information will follow.
FAQS
Key Components of Veterans Treatment Court
1. Integrates Veterans Administration services and organizations, alcohol and drug treatment, mental health treatment, and medical services with the justice system case processing.
2. Uses a non-adversarial approach. Prosecution and defense promote public safety while meeting participant’s due process.
3. Eligible participants are identified early and promptly placed.
4. Provides access to a continuum of alcohol and drug and mental health services. Different levels meet a wide variant of issues which include PTSD, TBI, DV, homelessness, and mentors.
5. Abstinence is monitored by alcohol and drug testing that is court ordered, frequent, random, and observed. The test results are used to determine client progress.
6. Coordinated strategy governs responses to participant compliance. This is done by “staffing the clients” and developing clear and understood incentives and sanctions in response to client behaviors.
7. Ongoing judicial interaction with each Veteran is essential which can integrate the chain of command structure.
8. Monitoring and evaluation measures the achievement of program goals and gage effectiveness. Have evaluation studies done with the program.
9. Continuing interdisciplinary education which promotes effective court planning, implementation, and operations.
10. Forging partnerships among the Veterans Administration, public agencies, and community based organizations. This will generate local support and enhances court effectiveness. Develop an oversight committee.
