Implementation of a Veterans Therapeutic Court

The purpose of the Drug Court Discretionary Grant Program (42 U.S.C. 3797u et seq.) is to provide financial and technical assistance to states, state courts, local courts, units of local government, and Indian tribal governments to develop and implement drug treatment courts that effectively integrate substance abuse treatment, mandatory drug testing, sanctions and incentives, and transitional services in a judicially supervised court setting with jurisdiction over nonviolent, substance-abusing offenders. The FY 2010 Adult Drug Court Discretionary Grant Program will provide grant funds to jurisdictions to implement or enhance a local drug court or to improve, enhance, expand, or financial support drug court services statewide.

Clark County will use the grant funds to implement a Veterans Therapeutic Court to assist non-violent misdemeanant offenders who have served in the armed forces of the United States with a coordinated substance abuse and/or co-occurring treatment strategy to help in successful reintegration into the community. By creating a Veterans Therapeutic Court, the goal is to divert identified veteran offenders into a judicially monitored hybrid drug and mental health court program by offering a comprehensive system of care which promotes public safety, sobriety, and reducing recidivism. With partnerships of state and federal departments of Veterans Affairs and other local veterans' organizations, the county will achieve their goals in helping this underserved population get the treatment, education, housing, and ancillary recovery services needed for long-term stability and reallocate resources in order to reduce overall costs within the county's criminal justice system. The grant funds will assist with the expense of drug court operational staff for prosecution, defense, judicial assistance, and para-professional program support staff necessary to create a separate court calendar for a Veterans Therapeutic Court including overtime pay for law enforcement accompaniment for field visits. The grant will offset the travel and registration expense to attend nationally sponsored drug court trainings, office supplies, and a professional services contract for program process and performance evaluation.

CA/NCF