Two men graduate from Veterans Court

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent editor

It was the first ceremony of its kind in Van Wert Municipal Court.

Two people assigned to Van Wert Veterans Court, also referred to as C.A.M.O. (Courts Assisting Military Members) Court, graduated from the program Wednesday morning, with Van Wert Municipal Court Judge Jill T. Worthington presiding over the ceremony.

Brandon Ross, Private First Class U.S. Army National Guard, was referred to Van Wert Veterans Court last year after his involvement in an OVI accident at Dutch John Road and U.S. Route 30 in Van Wert.

“Since being put in the program he has made remarkable strides,” Chief Probation Officer and Veterans Court Director John Wiley said during the ceremony.

An emotional Ross said he was thankful and very grateful to be part of the program.

Darrell Hensley, Private First Class U.S. Army, struggled with alcohol and drugs and was arrested for domestic violence in October, 2020. According to Wiley, he was the first person assigned to the program.

“Today he is on the board of Haven of Hope where he volunteers,” Wiley said. “He has another apartment where he is away from the drama that he used to be around.”

Hensley said when he entered the program he didn’t care about getting sober but changed his mindset during the process.

Both men received a certificate of achievement, a small gift basket and a C.A.M.O. shirt.

In addition to Judge Worthington and Wiley, CAMO Program Coordinator Carli Boroff, Peer Mentor Coordinator Mike Kennedy, Ashley Showalter of the Veterans Service Office, Tony Gruetman of Westwood Behavioral Health Center, Veterans Justice Outreach Coordinator Rita Wynn and Terry Simson with the Van Wert County Public Defenders Office, along with various law enforcement officers were at the ceremony.

The guest speaker was retired Van Wert County Veterans Services Officer Keith Harman, who also served as Commander-In-Chief of the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States. He offered encouraging words to Ross and Hensley.

“You have a bright future in front of you,” Harman stated. “You hold the key to that future but you have to want to be better and you have to want to change your life. I’m very proud of the fact that Van Wert has a Veterans Court…I wish it was there during my 20 years as Veterans Services Officer.”

The first Veterans Treatment Court, was started in Buffalo, New York in 2008 and is now one of more than 400 such courts operating around the country. The goal is to help military veterans overcome mental health and substance abuse challenges that can lead to involvement in the criminal justice system.

“People don’t realize that now with people doing multiple deployments overseas, they’re going to come back with some sort of issues and we’re here to help,” Wiley explained. “These guys deserve it because they put their lives on the line to fight for their country and we owe them that thanks.”

“What happens is when they come in initially for court they fill out an information form and on that form it asks if they ever served in the military, so once the clerks get that information they pass it on to me and I’ll let either the judge or magistrate know these folks are veterans. They will discuss the Veterans Court in the arraignment session and then send them to me for an initial screening, which consists of a risk assessment and getting a copy of their DD214 to see what kind of discharge they got. Once I give the okay I send it upstairs to the judge and she’s the final approval of whether they’re accepted into the VTC or not.”

Wiley added that successful completion of the program could mean the original charge or charges will be reduced by the court.

Van Wert Veterans Court is an ongoing program that has been certified for two years and is expected to be recertified by the Ohio Supreme Court after that.