And Now Veterans: 'We Owe Them'

And Now Veterans: 'We Owe Them'
BY JORDAN SMITH

Travis County is embarking on a new project that will establish, later this spring, the courthouse's newest addition: veterans' diversion court. The impetus for the court came nearly three years ago, from Precinct 4 Constable Maria Canchola, who knows well the reintegration difficulties faced by many vets. Her uncle and cousin came back from war changed men, troubled by "shell shock" they medicated with alcohol. And for 26 years, she has helped her partner – a "stoic veteran" – a former Marine who served as a reconnaissance sniper in Viet­nam. He suffered for nearly 30 years before finally seeking treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder, which he never connected to his drinking and which invariably led to run-ins with the law and more than one night in jail.
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