SC Veterans Treatment Court Enhancement

The South Carolina Department of Veterans Affairs is applying for a Category 4 statewide enhancement grant in the amount of $1,498,659. The Veterans Treatment Courts (VTCs) (Type A) are pre-adjudication courts. The seven VTC courts will serve 50 participants per year for a total of 200 participants over the life of the grant.

The minimum length of participation in the court is 6 months and there is no maximum length of participation. The average length of participation is between 12 and 14 months.

The VTCs in South Carolina are designed to assist justice-involved defendants veterans with identified behavioral health treatment needs. Participants have access to all three forms of FDA-approved medications to treat opioid use disorder.

The proposed enhancements include a) establishing a Statewide VTC Specialist who will serve as the Coordinator for VTCs statewide; b) establishing a statewide case management database for the VTCs; and c) providing sub-awards to three rural VTCs to support Coordinators and local treatment and supervision needs.

As discussed on page 12 of the program narrative, the proposed enhancements align with NADCP's Adult Drug Court Best Practice Standard II, V, and VIII and VTC Key Components 4 and 8.

This proposal does not leverage any other federal funding source. The South Carolina Department of Veterans Affairs has never received a drug court grant from OJP