State lawmakers are thinking about setting up a special court for Tennessee veterans who find themselves on the wrong side of the law. Vets can struggle with post-traumatic stress disorder, brain injuries and addiction. So if they land in court for a minor offense, lawmakers want to steer them into treatment instead of jail.
The state estimates it would cost millions of dollars a year to set up veterans’ courts in Tennessee’s 31 judicial districts. For now the proposal has been whittled down to simply require a feasibility study, which backers hope leads to a more concrete plan next year.
The sponsor wants the state’s legal system to be ready to help returning vets, after a decade of war overseas. Similar courts are already in place in states like New York, Colorado, and Oklahoma, where supporters say they enjoy far less backsliding than drug courts.
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