Hector Barajas-Varela learned the hard way that honorable military service does not guarantee permanent U.S. residents U.S. citizenship. Barajas-Varela was honorably discharged from the U.S. Army after six years of service but did not apply for citizenship prior to discharge because he believed that military service automatically guaranteed his citizenship. In 2004, Barajas-Varela was deported to Mexico after being convicted and serving 13 months in prison and one month on parole for shooting at an occupied vehicle. Post-deportation, he turned his small shelter in Tijuana into the Deported Veterans Support House. “The Bunker” is a haven for veterans stripped of their right to live in the U.S. because of criminal convictions and provides services and legal assistance to displaced U.S. veterans. Since 2013, The Bunker has severed approximately 20 veterans, has a second location in Juarez near the Texas border, and identified an additional 300 deported from approximately 40 countries. A third location is in the process of opening in the Dominican Republic. Barajas-Varela applied for U.S. citizenship in 2016, and California Governor Jerry Brown pardoned him in April of 2017 for the conviction that resulted in his deportation. This pardon is anticipated to clear the way for his citizenship. If granted, Barajas-Varela’s case will be rare as few deported veterans have legally returned to the U.S.
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Erika J. Brooke & Jacinta M. Gau
This study tests for potential impact of military service, age of entry, service length, combat exposure, discharge type, and military branch on lifetime arrests among state prison inmates.
Amy Y. Cameron, Christy Capone, & Daria Mamon
The article presents a new intensive outpatient program that connects inpatient and outpatient levels of care for combat veterans with PTSD and discusses the feasibility of outpatient programs implementing intensive outpatient programs within their operations to reduce PTSD symptoms, enhance quality of post-program psychotherapy, and reduce PTSD symptoms among veterans.
Daniel F. Gros, Cynthia Luethcke Lancaster, Cristina M. Lopez, & Ron Acierno
This study investigates satisfaction and perceptions of the service delivery quality among veterans participating in a clinical trial that compares home-based telehealth and in-person delivery of Prolonged Exposure Therapy for PTSD.
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Practitioner Publications
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Benjamin Pomerance
This law review article provides an overview of veterans treatment courts (VTCs) and judicial autonomy in the U.S., examines the primary rationales for legislative and executive intervention in the judicial process, and explores whether statute standards for VTCs are permissible under a separation of powers perspective and beneficial under a public policy perspective. Additionally, existing state statutes governing VTCs are compared, and the author sets forth a framework balancing statutory oversight and judicial autonomy.
Evan Seamone, Shoba Sreenivasan, James McGuire, Dan Smee, Sean Clark, & Daniel Dow
The authors in this journal article propose a rehabilitative pathway for the criminal justice system to be implemented prior to military separation. The approach builds on the successes of mental health courts and is based on case circumstances with the goals of enhancing resilience, honorable discharge status, and successful reintegration.
SAMHSA’s GAINS CENTER for Behavioral Health and Justice Transformation
This article describes how the Johnson County Jail incorporated the Brief Jail Mental Health Screen into its intake process to increase the identification of mental illness at jail entry.
Prosecutor, Police Chief, and Chief Magistrate Tips for Supporting the Local Behavioral Health Service Continuum
SAMHSA’s GAINS CENTER for Behavioral Health and Justice Transformation
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
This report provides results from 378 SSVF grantees funded in FY-2016 to inform readers of the grantees’ intervention and prevention efforts targeting homelessness.
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Multimedia Resources
(Webinars, Podcasts, Online Resources)
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May 9, 3:00 PM – 4:00 P.M. EDT
Michigan Veteran Affairs Agency
This webinar will introduce the Veterans Community Action Teams (VCAT) and discuss Veteran Benefits for Education including the G.I. Bill and scholarship opportunities. Representatives from 10 colleges will then describe ways in which their colleges are supporting veterans and what they can do to assist veterans in completing their education requirements.
May 17, 1:00 P.M. EDT
Veterans History Project
A discussion on the effects of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), its role in crime and rehabilitation, how to provide support for those who have come in contact with the criminal justice system, and the successes, challenges, and lessons learned from veterans correctional housing units. This event will be held at the Library of Congress’s Thomas Jefferson Building and livestreamed on
YouTube and on the
Library’s Facebook page.
U.S. Department of Justice
National Association of Drug Court Professionals
This toolkit contains resources for engaging the media, holding graduations and special events, raising awareness, fostering community support, and connecting with elected officials.
RecruitMilitary
This interactive map offers a calendar of veteran job fairs in cities across the nation.
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
This spreadsheet contains the current (Fiscal Year 2018) Supportive Services for Veteran Families Provider List by state.
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Establishes eligibility for veterans to use hyperbaric oxygen treatment for traumatic brain injury; establishes the conditions for use of hyperbaric oxygen treatment; prohibits sanctions of health care providers; clarifies the duties of health care insurers regarding hyperbaric oxygen treatment; prohibits certain actions by state officials.
Aimed at helping Kentucky veterans and active duty service members start businesses by waiving filing fees. Veteran-owned businesses started after August 1, 2018, will be exempt from paying filing fees for articles of incorporation, articles of organization, and other documents.
Directs the director of Veterans' Affairs to study progress of establishment of Roseburg Oregon Veterans' Home; prohibits sale or destruction of military medals and decorations by Department of State Lands; permits Department of State Lands to deliver military medals and decorations to certain custodians; directs director of Veterans' Affairs to identify potential sites for veterans' cemeteries; establishes program to provide outreach and assistance to incarcerated veterans.
Relates to Department of Veterans Services; provides the secretary of Veterans and Defense Affairs with greater direct oversight of the Department of Veterans Services; requires that the current cost-benefit and value analysis of existing programs and services and for new programs and services before they are established and implemented be conducted annually, with the results provided to the secretary, and that the department submit an annual report through the secretary.
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Veterans Events
May 28: Happy Memorial Day
Veteran-Focused or -Related Community Events

Upcoming Events Notice
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Contribute to the Next Issue
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To submit content for the next issue of this newsletter, please email
ndcrc@american.edu with "Veterans’ Justice and Mental Health Newsletter” in the subject line.
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Our mission is to inform policy, practice, and scholarship through the distribution of current veterans treatment court-related resources.
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The
National Drug Court Resource, Policy, and Evidence-Based Practice Center
, funded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance and operated by the Justice Programs Office (JPO) at American University, strives to provide practitioners and professionals working in the drug court field with current resources and upcoming events.
Please email
ndcrc@american.edu
with any inquiries.
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National Drug Court Resource Center | Justice Programs Office
ndcrc.org
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