Eligibility

The Veterans Treatment Court program is an immediate and highly structured judicial intervention process for eligible offenders, which expedites the pending criminal case and requires a successful completion of the program in lieu of incarceration. The program maintains strict compliance with all applicable state and federal laws. In order to maintain compliance with all applicable standards, the Veterans Treatment Court team will meet and review all applicable state and federal laws on an annual basis.

The Veterans Treatment Court is a viable and appropriate alternative to incarceration for certain criminal defendants. Decisions will be made objectively and balanced with the mission to keep the community safe. The Veterans Treatment Court program has established eligibility requirements based on the target population and in accordance with current federal and Tennessee Statues.

The Williamson County Veterans Treatment Court targets male and female veterans and substance abuse and/or mental health issues who have served in the United States Armed Forces. Defendants may apply to Veterans Treatment Court at any time prior to sentencing. In addition, an otherwise eligible probationer whom becomes subject to an application to revoke may be admitted to Veterans Treatment Court. ALL defendants must have at least one year remaining on their sentence if already probated. 

All admissions to the Veterans Treatment Court program will be decided upon a case by case basis, taking into consideration all pertinent facts, evidence, law and offender circumstances.

Program Referrals and Admission

Referrals to the Veterans Treatment Court program are made by judges, the VA, treatment providers, attorneys, probation officers, the Public Defender’s office, Veterans Treatment Court staff and the District Attorney’s office.  The attorney for the applicant (or the other referral source) submits the referral/application to the Veterans Court Director for processing. The District Attorney General’s office is responsible for screening potential court participants’ applications by reviewing the current charges, facilitating all interstate and national background checks and requesting input of supervision concerning previous probationary supervisions. 

Once screening is complete, The District Attorney will then provide all pertinent information to the Program Director to make the appropriate referrals for entry into the court. Eligible adult veteran offenders will be offered a choice between Veterans Treatment Court and the traditional court system. The offender is provided the opportunity to discuss the case with an attorney prior to voluntarily entering the program. Once the applicant has been approved for admission to the Veterans Treatment Court by the team, the opportunity is provided to review all documents and paperwork required for entry, including the consequences of a plea, with their attorney. Upon being accepted in to the court, the participant will be provided a Performance Contract, Phase Responsibilities Agreement and the Probation rules for supervision. At this point the participant will meet with a Veterans Treatment Court member for Orientation. The new participant will meet with his or her client specialist for a scheduled treatment orientation and intake to answer any outstanding questions.