Episode 3 kicks off a two-part series on peer support, starting with how the VA is expanding peer support to ensure justice-involved veterans have access to veterans with lived experience who provide individualized assistance connecting to VA services. Butch talks with the VA’s National Peer Services Coordinator Antonio Harris, LCSW, about the difference between VA peers and veteran mentors and the way in which both roles compliment each other and offer a more robust network of support and guidance to justice-involved veterans. Stay tuned for episode 4 which will dive into community peer support.

Veterans who are homeless or at risk for homelessness often face legal issues that make it difficult for them to obtain or maintain stable housing. Thanks to the VA's Legal Services for Veterans program, these needs are now being met in unique and effective ways. Butch sits down with program's national coordinator Madolyn Gingell to talk about how veterans can access legal support and the new grant program that is empowering local legal providers to assist.

If you are a veteran in crisis please call the Veterans Crisis Line: Dial 988 and press 1

Click here for more on the Legal Services for Veterans program.

In the first episode of season 2, Butch sits down with Katie Stewart, L.C.S.W., national coordinator of the Veterans Justice Outreach (VJO) Program for a deep dive into the the many ways VJOs ensure that justice-involved veterans have access to the care, services, and other benefits they’ve earned. VJOs help maximize veterans’ potential for success and stability in the community, including by helping them avoid homelessness and ending their involvement in the justice system. The discussion includes an explanation of the Veterans Re-Entry Search Service, a vital resource for identifying justice-involved veterans and linking them with care.

If you are a veteran in crisis please call the Veterans Crisis Line: Dial 988 and press 1

Click here for more on the Veterans Justice Outreach Program.

"So our primary goal is to maintain peace in the community and to repair breaches of that peace. So when there's an offense against an individual or an offense that threatens the community in any way, we go into problem solving mode and we try to do that in a just and fair way."

Season 1 concludes with a discussion with Montgomery County, Texas First Assistant District Attorney Mike Holley. Mike talks about his philosophy as a prosecutor and why he believes veterans treatment court and other interventions for veterans are the honorable approach to serving those who served us.

“VTCs [veterans treatment courts] are critical to veterans because many of them I have found are ashamed that they are defendants in criminal courts. They have committed crimes against the very society they have sworn to protect, and it’s a long, hard fall from grace. These veterans really need our help.”

After seeing the success of Kansas’ only veterans treatment court, Kansas Chief Justice Lawton Nuss made the decision to retire early from the bench and devote his time to traveling the state and building support for more programs. In the penultimate episode of season 1, he and Butch discuss what led to this decision, his work to help jurisdictions in Kansas increase access to treatment for veterans, and why he believes these programs will continue to expand.

“These [veterans treatment court] mentors, it's not the traditional mentor model...They're just there to listen. I think we underplay the power of listening."

Todd Kramer is living proof that the justice system can play a role in facilitating treatment and recovery. His story also exemplifies the therapeutic camaraderie that exists among those who serve. Todd served in both the Air Force and the Army and deployed as a 40 year old E5. When he came home he struggled to reengage and his addiction deepened. He found recovery and his purpose in veterans treatment court. Hear his remarkable story and learn how volunteer mentors like Todd are the lifeblood of veterans treatment courts today.

“I would like to see a veterans treatment court in reach of every veteran that's in need. Let us in the justice system be cognizant of the needs of the veteran. And if there's something we can do to assist them in their journey, let us do that.”

S1E5 profiles a true hero of the veterans treatment court movement, retired Buffalo Judge Robert Russell. In 2008, Judge Russell forever transformed the way the justice system identifies, assess, and treats veterans with a simple act of ingenuity and compassion. Hear the story of how the first veterans treatment court came to be, how it spawned a system of programs serving over 15,000 veterans each year, and why it represents the most effective intervention for justice-involved veterans with substance use and mental health disorders.

“I tell all my buddies, if you tried VA 10 years ago like I did, try us again.” Is the VA a waste of time? Can it really provide the services and care you need? John Boerstler, Chief Veterans Experience Officer at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, joins the podcast to share just how much the VA has expanded, evolved, and modernized post-9/11 to better listen to veterans and respond to meet their unique needs.