VA Offers Legal Alternatives to Those Accused of Crimes

Troubled Veterans Get a Hand
VA Offers Legal Alternatives to Those Accused of Crimes

By P. Solomon Banda
Associated Press
Friday, August 7, 2009

DENVER -- The Department of Veterans Affairs has launched an ambitious program offering legal intervention on behalf of veterans with arrest records, an effort aimed at preventing repeat crimes among service members returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

The VA started its Veterans Justice Outreach Initiative early this year -- before public attention intensified on a Fort Carson, Colo.-based unit from which a handful of soldiers have been accused of murder, attempted murder or manslaughter after returning from Iraq, where they faced intense combat. Most of the soldiers had been arrested on charges of domestic violence, assault, illegal gun possession, or alcohol and drug violations before the slayings.

A July 15 Army report said more study is needed to determine whether there is a link between the soldiers' alleged crimes and their heavy combat duty and lengthy deployments.

The VA is training 145 specialists at its hospitals nationwide to help veterans who are in jails, awaiting trial or serving misdemeanor sentences. Other VA programs target homelessness and help veterans readjust after serving prison terms for serious crimes.

To date, more than 1.9 million U.S. service members have gone to Iraq and Afghanistan, the largest deployment since 3.4 million were sent to Southeast Asia in support of the Vietnam War.

James McGuire, the Los Angeles-based director of the VA's incarcerated veterans outreach programs, said some war veterans "are obviously struggling."

"The VA is very attuned to this and received an education about all this after Vietnam, when the whole issue of PTSD came up," he said, using the abbreviation for post-traumatic stress disorder.
read more here
Troubled Veterans Get a Hand