Veterans Court: 'I Was Afforded Mercy and was Given Grace by People I Never Expected it From

Veterans Court: 'I Was Afforded Mercy and was Given Grace by People I Never Expected it From'
Hector Matascastillo, a former Army Ranger, spoke about the importance Veterans' Court programs like the one Washington County launched Monday in Stillwater are for vets who find themselves embattled in the criminal justice system.
By Shawn Hogendorf

Former Army Ranger, Hector Matascastillo, talks about the importance of Veterans Court programs like the one Washington County unveiled Monday in Stillwater. Credit Shawn Hogendorf

Eight years ago, former Army Ranger, Hector Matascastillo, found himself standing in front of his home, armed with two unloaded pistols, and surrounded by eight Lakeville police officers.

“January 24, 2004, that was my intersection with the criminal justice system,” Matascastillo, who served on 13 military deployments said Monday morning at the unveiling of the Washington County Veterans Court diversion program.

That night, Matascastillo, 39, of St. Paul said he went into a disassociative state of mind due to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder that hadn’t been treated—other than self medicating—and wound up in his front yard in an armed standoff in the midst of a flashback.

“In my mind I was engaging one individual after clearing a room,” he said. “The whole incident was about four-minutes long. About 30 seconds into it I realized I wasn’t where I thought I was and that I was surrounded by police officers who all had their guns out at me.”

At that moment, Matascastillo said, he was faced with the question: “Do I want to survive this thing?”

As he began to realize what was happening, the situation “quickly evolved” into feelings of shame, Matascastillo said.

“I couldn’t believe it. My kid was watching while this was happening. I was out of control,” he said. “I thought I failed and let everyone down. I didn’t live up to the creed. I wanted to die at that point.”

Eventually, Matascastillo gave up his weapons and went to the ground.

That’s when the healing started.
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