'Veterans Court' Trend Grows

The award-winning film, "The Hurt Locker" gives a peek at the stresses veterans face upon returning from combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. In one pivotal scene, a veteran appears dumbfounded by the sight of a supermarket aisle, stacked high with a wealth of brightly colored packages. How does someone whose been defusing IEDs for 18 months and making daily life-and-death decisions, the film seems to ask, decide which brand of chips to buy?

It's a good question that leads to a bigger one: how do returning veterans -- many of whom may have post-traumatic stress symptoms -- make important life decisions? While the majority of veterans do well back home, some use alcohol and drugs to blunt feelings, and some get involved in crime.

After seeing hundreds of veterans come through his court, Judge Robert T. Russell Jr., of Buffalo, N.Y., set up a "Veterans Treatment Court."

"Russell’s idea has inspired 10 other communities nationwide to set up similar courts," wrote Jerry Zremski in the Buffalo News. Russell spoke recently at a meeting of the House Veterans Affairs Committee, where he explained his brainchild.

“You have been an inspiration to people all over the country,” said Rep. Bob Filner, D-Calif., at the meeting.

Russell modeled the court on so-called drug courts, which force nonviolent perpetrators into treatment rather than jail. He teams "veterans guilty of nonviolent felony or misdemeanor offenses with volunteer veteran mentors, requiring them to adhere to a strict schedule of rehabilitation programs and court appearances. So far, 120 vets have entered the program, and only five have been kicked out. Of the program’s 18 graduates to date, not one has been re-arrested," according to Zremski.

"They are clean and sober and actively addressing any mental health needs," according to Russell, as quoted in the article. "All are either employed or pursuing further education. Many have been able to mend strained relationships with family and friends, and those who were homeless were able to attain stable housing.”

According to Zremski, "In other words, the program is taking psychologically wounded warriors — including many who suffer from posttraumatic stress disorder or drug and alcohol addiction — and setting them on a path for a better life."

Russell started veterans court in early 2008, and it quickly has grown after being featured on NBC’s "Today" show and in other media. Veterans courts have opened in other New York cities, as well as Chicago, Nevada and Texas. And Senator John Kerry is pushing a bill that would fund such courts nationwide.

Photo courtesy of U.S. Army, via Flickr