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Many veterans, especially combat veterans, turn to drugs and alcohol
as an effort to self-medicate service-related issues. The goal of VATIP
is to reduce veterans’ criminal behavior and rearrest rates
while helping them turn their lives around.
In general, comprehensive “veterans-helping-veterans” service
programs and drug court programs have been effective in reducing the
rate of recidivism. A recent study indicated that only 15 percent of
drug court participants were rearrested, but the rate for non-participants
was over 75 percent.
The VOC’s case managers, who have the professional expertise to
determine the root causes of arrested veterans' addictions, work with
district attorneys, judges, public defenders, and other elements of the
Unified Court System of the Seventh Judicial District.
Once identified and screened, veterans are linked with veteran-specific
substance abuse and mental health treatment programs as alternatives
to incarceration. To graduate from Drug Treatment Court, participants
must meet the following criteria: achieve at least one year of sobriety,
a high school diploma or completion of a GED program, and gainful employment.
Completion of these requirements may take up to two years and sometimes
longer.
According to the City’s Drug Treatment Court Supervising Justice,
Patricia Marks, the court “has enjoyed an ongoing relationship with
the Veterans Outreach Center for almost four years.” Justice Marks
also stated, in part, “The case managers are an integral part of
our court as they give updated status reports on the defendants directly
to the judge. Due to the availability and expertise of the VOC case managers,
the veterans’ needs are met quickly.”
The Veterans Alternatives to Incarceration Program is funded with generous
support from government and private foundations. Not only is this program
very cost-effective, it saves taxpayers money, because enrolling veterans
in treatment programs costs significantly less than housing them in medium
security-jails and frees up prison beds for more dangerous criminals.
Rochester Veterans' Court
Veterans Outreach Center, along with the New York State Unified Court System and VA Healthcare Network Upstate New York, launched the Rochester Veterans’ Court in 2009. An expansion of VOC’s Veterans Alternative to Incarceration Program (VATIP), this veteran-specific court aims to help reintegrate into society those veterans who have become involved with the criminal justice system by addressing the underlying factors that led to arrest in the first place.
This collaborative partnership recognizes that the men and women who make so many sacrifices serving our country do not emerge from their war experiences unscarred. Veterans are unique in that most would not be offenders—and had not been offenders—but for their service to their country. Some veterans attempt to deal with what they saw or experienced during combat by self-medicating with drugs and alcohol. This can lead a veteran down a slippery slope from job loss, to family alienation, to homelessness, and worse.
The goal of VATIP—and, by extension, Rochester Veterans’ Court (RVC)—is to reduce veterans’ criminal behavior and rearrest rates while helping them turn their lives around. Comprehensive “veterans-helping-veterans” service programs and drug court programs have been effective in reducing the rate of recidivism. A recent study indicated that only 15 percent of drug court participants were rearrested, but the rate for non-participants was over 75 percent.
Veterans Outreach Center’s clinical case managers, who have the professional expertise to determine the root causes of arrested veterans’ addictions, have served as veterans’ advocates to the Rochester Problem Solving Courts (i.e. Mental Health Court, Drug Treatment Court, Domestic Violence Court) since 1999. Veterans Outreach Center’s involvement in Rochester Veterans’ Court will be very similar to its involvement in the other Problem Solving Courts, except that VOC will be the lead agency in RVC.
Veterans entering the criminal justice system in Monroe County are first identified and screened, and then are linked with veteran-specific substance abuse and mental health treatment programs as alternatives to incarceration. To graduate from Rochester Veterans’ Court, participants must meet the following criteria: achieve at least one year of sobriety, earn a high school diploma or complete a GED program, and become gainfully employed. Completion of these requirements may take longer than two years.
According to the Rochester Veterans’ Court Supervising Justice, Patricia Marks, the Unified Court System of the Seventh Judicial District “has enjoyed an ongoing relationship with Veterans Outreach Center for a number of years.” Justice Marks also stated, “The case managers are an integral part of our court; they give updated status reports on the defendants directly to the judge. Due to the availability and expertise of VOC’s case managers, the veterans’ needs are met quickly.”
The Veterans Alternatives to Incarceration Program is funded with generous support from government and private foundations. Not only is this program very cost-effective, but it also saves taxpayers money. Enrolling veterans in treatment programs costs significantly less than housing them in medium security-jails and frees up prison beds for more dangerous criminals.
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