Vincent Lombardi
Baltimore Watchdog Staff Writer
Frederick County and Washington County have announced that there will be a new regional veterans treatment court that will operate for both counties. It is expected that this court will be functioning in the summer of 2024.
Veterans’ treatment courts aim to aid veterans who suffer from substance abuse problems, post-traumatic stress disorder, severe brain trauma, and other types of mental health issues while under the supervision of the court. This court will also provide care to those who have committed crimes while suffering from previous mental health issues.
This court falls under the category as a problem-solving court, and will be the second multi-county problem solving court in Maryland.
The Frederick and Washington County Regional Veterans Treatment Court has the opportunity to help thousands of veterans as it is reported that the rate of veterans who suffer from PTSD can “be as high as 20% to 30%”.
The need for more veterans court is in high demand as it “over 10,000 veteran offenders were in the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons at the end of 2019, accounting for almost six percent of all BOP inmates.”
One active-duty Navy officer, who has been serving his country for seven years. He believes that this court could help veterans in a lot of ways, but there are limits to how the court is able to help people.
“For people who are seriously suffering, obviously any program is good. I also think that there might be at this point an overabundance of pushing someone towards that they have PTSD, when in reality I think a lot of people are more resilient than we give them credit for,” said the officer.
An army veteran by the name of Brian Slivka, who served for five years, believes that this veterans court is almost necessary in the state of Maryland for the treatment of our former military members, but the court needs to be conscientious.
“Any program that supports those folks is a bonus, but I believe those types of programs are a benefit, and if followed and run properly, can be a huge benefit,” said Slivka. “Anytime you have these types of programs and things that you think are helping out our veterans, it’s interesting to see how long they last and to see if they really do make a difference.”