“After enduring the trauma that often accompanies service, veterans have more than earned the chance to choose treatment and care before incarceration,” said Senator Jerry Relph (R-St. Cloud). “We are choosing to extend compassion and empathy first, to give veterans the opportunity to get their lives back on track and reintegrate into our communities carrying with them the valuable part of their service rather than the trauma.”

Several counties already have veteran’s treatment courts that help veterans receive treatment for their less severe crimes instead of prison. The Veterans Restorative Justice Act is not a mandate; it simply provides a statutory set of guidelines for veterans’ treatment in courts.

The bill recommends veterans be eligible for the diversionary program if their offense is below a severity level 7 on the state’s sentencing grid, and that they swear that the offense was committed due to one of several factors: service-connected sexual trauma, a traumatic brain injury, PTSD, a substance abuse disorder, or mental health condition. The court will investigate all claims of the service connection. Veterans would be required to plead guilty and accept the conditions of the court, including remaining sober and completing a treatment program.