A new Judiciary court model is emerging across the nation to address the underlying circumstances surrounding law offenders who are veterans. Since 9/11, more than 1.7 million U.S. soldiers have deployed to combat in Afghanistan and Iraq.  Of these troops, 500,000 are National Guard and Reserve soldiers. Most have served multiple times in these war zones. For many, the battle does not end when they return home.

Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Military Sexual Trauma (MST), depression, and substance abuse are war wounds that pain soldiers and their families long after they leave the combat field. War changes people.

Hawaii Family Court Judge Michael Broderick has seen hundreds of Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) requests involving military members in domestic violence situations cross his desk and his courtroom.  The numbers peak soon after soldiers return home from combat. “On a scale from 1 to 10, 1 being mild, 10 being the most severe; the military allegations are usually 8,9,10. The severity seems directly related to the number of deployments of the soldier,” commented Judge Broderick to the Healing the Trauma of War Executive Board. “Many of the allegations involve choking, punching with a closed fist, and stalking. The timing of the petition is usually within days or weeks of the soldier’s return home.”

Judge Broderick has observed some key differences with cases involving soldiers. “Their courtroom behavior displays high anxiety.  They appear overly rigid and intense.  Sometimes they cry easily. They are raw emotionally.  Soldiers will shake their leg or tap on the courtroom table incessantly for the entire course of the trial,” he observed.

“I often hear from the spouse that he was one man before war and another man after war,” relays Judge Broderick.  “Rather than deny the allegations, the military respondent’s reaction is often quite different.  ‘Yes, I did it.  I need help, Judge’ is a common plea. No matter what the outcome of the case, I make it a point to thank them for their service to our country.”

Veterans Court is uniquely positioned to identify veterans who have combat-related mental health and substance abuse conditions, connect these veterans to a broad array of treatment and support services, strictly monitor their rehabilitation progress, and graduate them from the judiciary process a year later as law-abiding, contributing citizens. Veterans Court is a hybrid treatment court that combines key elements from the Drug Court and the Mental Health Court and adds two unique components: active Veteran Affairs engagement and peer-to-peer mentors.

Buffalo, New York Judge Robert Russell launched the first Veterans Court in the nation January 2008. As both the Drug Court and Mental Health Treatment Court judge, Judge Russell surveyed his court to find veterans that were already on his court docket. Then he scheduled these veterans to appear in court on Tuesday afternoons.  The Federal government, through the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs, put a VA staff member equipped with a laptop at the hearing to connect veterans with a wide range of support services.  On-demand in the courtroom, the VA representative registers the veteran for healthcare insurance, mental health and substance abuse counseling and treatment appointments, job placement, housing assistance, school tuition scholarships, along with other federally-paid benefits and services.  Peer mentors paired with these veterans keep them on track.

Hawaii House Committee on the Judiciary will hear testimony today on House Bill 1942 to create a Veterans Court.  Hawaii will be the first State in the nation to design a treatment plan, specifically for National Guard and Reserve soldiers.  Thirty percent of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom troops are National Guard and Reserve soldiers.  Recent studies reveal that these soldiers are at higher risk for PTSD and other medical conditions than active duty soldiers and lack the support network offered to their active duty counterparts.

One in three homeless adults is a veteran.  Of this group, a significant number have been arrested at least once.  The Judiciary is the most powerful authority in the life of a troubled veteran to get them connected with the help they need. Veterans Court is a new model that is sorely needed for a country at war.