Lake Havasu City/Kingman Regional Veterans Treatment Court

The Lake Havasu City/Kingman Regional Veterans Treatment Court

Opportunity ID: O-BJA-2021-46003

Abstract

The Lake Havasu City/Kingman Regional Veterans Treatment Court (LHC/Kingman RVTC) was established as a response to the limited amount of resources available to Justice Involved Veterans located in the rural communities of Lake Havasu City and the City of Kingman. Initially established in November 2013, the Lake Havasu City Veterans Treatment Court (LHC VTC) was developed with the mission to give Justice Involved Veterans, who have faithfully served their country, a second chance. As nearly 95% of the Veterans identified by the LHC VTC have charges that are directly related to substance abuse and/or mental health issues. The goals of this program are to promote the sobriety, recovery, and stability of every Justice Involved Veteran by connecting them with treatment services for substance abuse and/or mental health issues and monitor their progress to encourage their success in the program.

Inspired by the positive impact the LHC VTC has on Justice Involved Veterans and its community, the City of Kingman established their own Veterans Treatment Court in December of 2015. Upon the formation of the Kingman Veterans Treatment Court, it became clear that for both communities to successfully serve their Veteran population, they would need to share resources. Thus, the Lake Havasu City/Kingman Regional Veterans Treatment Court (LHC/Kingman RVTC) was established in April 2016. With the nearest VA hospital over 150 miles away, the collaborative effort of the LHC/Kingman RVTC has been able to bridge the gap of substance abuse and mental health treatment services in both communities for combat Veterans in this program; however, a gap in treatment services still exists for non-combat Veteran participants and Veterans ineligible to receive VA services.

As the number of Veterans to be served by the LHC/Kingman RVTC continues to grow, so does the gap in service for substance abuse treatment for the participants in this program who are ineligible to receive local VA treatment services, as well as the need to provide more peer support services to all participants. The LHC/Kingman RVTC is asking for a total of $499,166.00 over 4 years to better serve Veterans with substance abuse treatment and peer-support services that they would not receive otherwise. This expansion will close a service gap in a program that has proven to be a crucial component in the treatment and sobriety of Justice Involved Veterans.