COUNTY EXPANDING REHAB EFFORTS: CHARLESTON CREATES VETS DRUG TREATMENT COURT

Charleston County is expanding its drug rehabilitation efforts to
include a special court for veterans.

Ninth Circuit Solicitor Scarlett Wilson on Monday announced the
creation of a Veterans Treatment Court, where vets who end up in the
criminal justice system can receive targeted attention to move them
away from the addiction that got them arrested.

The strategy, which has been used in other parts of the country, is
being done in conjunction with the Department of Veterans Affairs and
Crisis Ministries.

"I think we're already seeing it," Wilson said of veterans returning
from war zones and falling into dependency. She quoted national
statistics indicating as many as 20 percent of those who served in
Iraq and Afghanistan are coming back with post-traumatic stress
disorder and other forms of depression.

Veterans "need access to veteran-specific resources in order to close
the revolving door of the criminal justice system," Wilson said.

Charleston already has an adult Drug Court where addicts who want to
get off drugs follow a rigorous treatment of monitoring, restitution
and employment requirements. The thrust is to address underlying
causes of their conduct, instead of resorting to incarceration. The
new veterans court takes those steps further, including using mentors
with military experience to help out.

While several factors go into determining who is eligible for the new
court, Wilson said a key decider is that the veteran's case does not
include a violent offense.

"The main thing is the defendant has to want to battle his
addiction," she added.

How many vets will go through the program is still an unknown. Ninth
Circuit Public Defender Ashley Pennington said his office annually
receives several hundred cases involving veterans.

One of the contributors to the local effort is third-year Charleston
School of Law student Justice L. Perkins, 32, of Augusta.

He conducted much of the research into treatment options for veterans
during an externship he did with the Homeless Justice Project at
Crisis Ministries.

"It just seemed a great way to help community and to help veterans,"
said Perkins, also a staff sergeant in the S.C. National Guard.

Nationally, the first Veterans Treatment Court was established in
2008. Today there are more than 40 such courts throughout the U.S.,
the VA said.

Another advantage of having a special court for vets, Wilson said, is
that it frees up space for civilians for the already up-and-running
county Drug Court.