The Veterans Court in Palm Beach County, Florida, provides alternative programs to criminal sentencing, probation and diversion treatment for veterans who have become involved on the wrong side of the law.
The program is a separate division of the 15th Judicial Circuit, and has jurisdiction over felony and misdemeanor level crimes. The assigned judge, prosecutor, public defender and probation officer are all veterans, as are all the mentors.
The prosecutor and probation officer are members of Post 271 in Tequesta, and many of the mentors are also Legionnaires. The mentors are assigned to defendants with the same military branch and era of service whenever possible.
The local VA Medical Center is a primary focus of the program, providing a liaison to the court and providing medical and mental health treatment, along with vocational counseling and housing assistance to qualified veterans.
Veterans who are defendants are monitored much more closely than typical defendants in other cases, to ensure compliance with recommended treatment. Cases with victims require special attention, and consent of the victim, and victims are invited to attend court sessions to observe the process, ask questions, and participate as they choose.
In domestic violence cases, this has proven to be even more successful in stopping the chain of recidivism than other court programs without VA and mentor participation.