Denton County's veterans treatment court wants to apply for two more years of state money to pay for counseling, addiction treatment and sobriety monitoring for the veterans in its program.
The Commissioners Court will consider on Tuesday, Oct. 27, whether to let the county seek a Fund for Veterans' Assistance grant from the Texas Veterans Commission. The agenda lists the request at $300,000. A memo from Judge Forrest Beadle of County Criminal Court No. 3, which runs the veterans court, puts the total at $600,000 over two years, with no county match required.
The grant would cover Sept. 1, 2027, through Aug. 31, 2029.
How the program works
The court is meant for active-duty service members and veterans charged with misdemeanors or low-level felonies, according to the memo. Instead of being prosecuted, participants can complete a court-supervised treatment program that lasts nine to 24 months. Eligible defendants are identified after arrest and referred to the program manager.
Participants meet with the court's management team, take urinalysis tests, appear regularly before the veterans court judge and attend weekly individual or group counseling, along with life skills, education, health and family counseling. Those who break the rules face sanctions. When participants finish every phase of treatment, the charges against them are dismissed.
The memo says graduates are less likely to be arrested again than people who do not get the program's supervision and treatment.
Where the money would go
The draft application sets a goal of serving 45 veterans and breaks down the $600,000 request this way:
