Veterans Treatment Court offers help with addiction
Anderson County has created a program that will help veterans with addiction, among other issues.
County Mayor Terry Frank announced the Anderson County Veterans Treatment Court program’s formal creation in a post on Tuesday, Oct. 7 sharing Judge Ryan Spitzer’s documents in which he formally created the program.
It’s a new track within the county’s existing Recovery Court program, which helps people recover from addiction.
The program, Spitzer said, combines traditional alcohol and drug abuse treatment with other tools to address veterans’ needs.
It connects them with Veterans’ Affairs services, veteran mentors and other programs and treatment to address post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injuries, and service-related physical injuries. Spitzer said the program will work with Ridgeview Behavioral Health Services.
“It is a way of appreciating the service these veterans have given to our country and recognizing that sometimes the physical and emotional toll of that service can contribute to their later alcohol or drug addiction and/or criminal justice involvement,” Spitzer, a veteran himself, stated regarding the Veterans Treatment Court.
Similar to other Recovery Court programs, the Veterans Treatment Court works with people assigned to it by court order.
However, Spitzer said most regular Recovery Court participants come into that program as part of a guilty plea or probation violation submission, often after numerous prior convictions.
But veterans often come in on their first significant criminal charges with an agreement by the state to dismiss the charges upon successful completion of the roughly two-year program.
“Anderson County has a significant portion of military veterans who are sometimes involved in the criminal justice system and who would likely benefit from Recovery Court resources, combined with VA benefits and services tailored to their unique needs and circumstances,” Spitzer’s order stated.
“Our community has a responsibility to provide recovery assistance to our veterans who have given so much for the security of our nation.”
The court’s mission is to identify and provide specific interventions for veterans involved in the criminal justice system “to promote public safety, reduce recidivism and improve the lives of veterans, their families and the community through treatment, support and intensive court supervision.”
“I can attest that Judge Spitzer has been working for years on a way to make this happen, going back to conversations he and I had before he was a judge,” Frank stated on Facebook.
The Anderson County Commission approved $25,000 for the court at its Sept. 15 meeting. The funding will come from opioid settlement funds, which came to the county from lawsuits.
Of that, $5,000 will go toward travel, $15,000 toward other contracted services, $2,000 toward staff development and $3,000 toward other expenses related to the court. The recommendation came to the County Commission from the Budget Committee.
Spitzer explained that he had aimed to start the Veterans Treatment Court for many years, similar to programs elsewhere in Tennessee, but until now the county lacked the funding.
Anyone interested in volunteering with the court’s programs may contact Kenny Brown, Recovery Court and Veterans Treatment Court director, at acrc7@tnacso.net or Anderson County Veterans Services Officer Scott Nation, the first and lead mentor, at snation@andersoncountytn.gov.