Second Judicial District Veterans Court Recognizes its 59th Graduate
The Second Judicial District’s Veterans Court recognized its 59th graduate on March 7, 2017, when Jerome Fuentes, a United States Air Force veteran from the Vietnam era, officially completed the program.
The graduation ceremony took place in the courtroom of District Court Judge Christina Argyres, who told Fuentes he had been “a tremendous asset to our program.” Judge Argyres also advised Fuentes not to view completing the program as an ending, but rather as “the beginning of a whole new lifestyle that you have committed to.”
Participation in Veterans Court is voluntary; however, participants must get approval from the Veterans Court judges and the prosecuting attorney to be accepted into the program. In addition to Judge Argyres, District Court Judge Stan Whitaker also presides over Veterans Court cases.
The criteria for defendants to be accepted into the program includes agreeing to follow all program rules—which consists of regularly attending counseling or therapy sessions—until completion of the program. At a minimum, that is an 18-month to 24-month commitment.
Once the Veterans Court Team deems a defendant eligible for the program, the prosecuting attorney will make a plea offer that includes Veterans Court. That plea will outline two sets of sentencing stipulations. One would apply if the defendant successfully completes the program; the other would apply if the defendant does not complete the program. Defendants who are eligible for a conditional discharge often have seen their charges dismissed after successfully completing the program.
Rehabilitation v. Incarceration
The Second Judicial District Court launched the Veterans Court program in November 2011, with a goal of rehabilitating—instead of incarcerating—veterans charged with certain felony-level crimes. Defendants charged with violent crimes resulting in death or great bodily harm, sexual offenses, crimes against children or a 5th DWI are automatically excluded from the program.
The court started the program because judges realized that many of the veterans appearing in court were dealing with substance abuse and/or mental health issues that very likely were underlying causes for the behavior that led to their arrest.
Upon acceptance into the program, participants are supervised by the District Court’s Judicial Supervision and Diversion Programs unit. Staff members from that unit guide participants through the program’s five phases, all of which include some level of treatment tailored to the individual veteran’s needs.
The program seems to work well for veterans because much of the therapy and counseling is done in group settings, which allows veterans to form bonds and support one another in much the same way they did as part of military units.
“Phase one is like an orientation to the program. A new participant learns what is expected of them while in the program and what they may expect from the program and team in return. They also have opportunities to meet the other participants and start establishing peer support,” said Tamara Wheeler, a lead worker in the Judicial Supervision and Diversion Programs unit. “Furthermore, the rules are stricter in this phase with regard to testing for drug and alcohol use because it provides a deterrent for future use, highlights positive behaviors, and allows for rapid intervention for those who need extra support or may have recently relapsed.”
Peer support also includes mentoring by veterans who may not be in the program, but have volunteered to help others make it through the process. Although one current veteran mentor, Michael Rooney, is a program graduate.
As a participant advances through the phases, they get more freedom, such as being allowed to travel out of state.
Ninety seven veterans have entered the program since its inception. Fuentes is the Veterans Court’s fifty-ninth graduate, and twenty one participants are currently active in the program.
Fuentes has indeed changed his lifestyle since joining the Veterans Court program on August 31, 2016 after pleading guilty to charges of assault with a deadly weapon. “I consider myself an alcoholic,” he said on his graduation day. “The biggest thing this program did for me was to get me to stop drinking.”
At a hearing on his case just before the graduation ceremony, even the team prosecutor commented on how well Fuentes did in the program and recommended that he receive a conditional discharge as a result of successfully completing the program.
With his legal issues behind him, Fuentes said, he plans to “restart my bucket list.” The first entry on that list is riding to the Annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in South Dakota, something he never thought possible before he entered the Veterans Court Program.