DTCDTCDTCDTCNewsletter

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Stand Down P.1P.1P.1P.1

Graduate Gab P.2P.2P.2P.2

By the Numbers P.3P.3P.3P.3

Spotlight On… P.3P.3P.3P.3

Mental Matters:

Homeless Veterans

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A QUARTERLY

PUBLICATION OF

THE DIVERSION

TREATMENT

COURT

Pictured left to right: Rhonda Haile, Jail

Mental Health; Adrienne Bryant and Vickie

Jester, DTC; Lauren Brown, Adrienne

Johnson, Craig Runyon, Ben Githieya,

DeKalb Public Defender’s Office; Judges

Rhathelia Stroud and Lindsay Jones, DeKalb

County Magistrate Court; Bedford Forte, DTC

Coordinator; Kiesha Storey and Jocelyn

Whitfield, DeKalb Solicitor’s Office; Thindwia

Cabiness and Natasha Williams, Veterans

Administration

Pictured left to right, Diversion Court Judge Lindsay Jones,

Cobb County Superior Court and Veterans Court Judge

Reuben Green, Diversion Court Director and Presiding

Judge Rhathelia Stroud, Atlanta Veterans Affairs Medical

Center Director Leslie B. Wiggins

The 6th Annual Homeless Veterans Court at Stand Down 2014 was

held October 4th at the Veteran’s Affairs Medical Center (VAMC) in

Decatur, GA. This year approximately 51 recommendations for

veterans were made. The DTC is working on improving Stand Down

by creating a database for the court recommendations that will

expedite the referral process to other courts and to provide

information to thee veteran regarding disposition or other action on

their case. This has been a six -year collaboration between the

VAMC and DeKalb County Magistrate Court, Diversion Treatment

Court. Additionally, the following organizations collaborated to

make this day a success: the DeKalb County Public Defender,

District Attorney and Solicitor General Offices, and the Emory

University School of Law’s Veteran Clinic. More information on the

National Stand Down Initiative is available at www.nhv.org for the

National Coalition for Homeless Veterans and at www.vvsd.net for

Veterans Village of San Diego, “Leave No One Behind.”

Homeless Veterans Court at Stand Down 2014

Graduate Gab

We are VERY proud of our

graduates and have highlighted

of these very special and

determined individuals below.*

*Names are always redacted or changed to safeguard our

participants’ identity.

RESOURCE INFORMATION – JAIL Metro Atlanta Area Jails

DeKalb www.dekalbsheriff.org Fulton www.fultonsheriff.org Gwinnett www.gwinnettcountysheriff.com DeKalb County Jail Medical Information Medical Sections: 3NW, 3SW, 3A Jail Mental Health: 404-298-8330 Health Services Coordinator: 404-298-8531 Confidential line to leave health information: 404-298-8525 Visiting the DeKalb County Jail Last Names A – K Monday, Wednesday, Saturday Last Names L – Z Tuesday, Thursday, Sunday Your name MUST be on the inmate’s visitation list for you to visit the inmate housed in the DeKalb County Jail How to alert and send medications to the DeKalb County Jail

• Send prescription bottle with the police/arrestee

• Call confidential medical telephone line 404-298-8525 and leave medical information

• Bring prescription bottles to the jail. Request medical assistance from the nurse on duty Page 2

his arrest. Mr. S was seeing a

psychiatrist monthly for medication

management, but he was not

engaging in a 12-step program on a

regular basis or in therapy for his

depression. All of that changed when

he entered DTC. As part of his DTC

treatment plan and amended bond

conditions, Mr. S started participating

in three 12-step meetings per week

and found a therapist who helped

the work. In addition

to reaching some

milestones in

recovery, Mr. S has

also secured a full-

time job that he loves

and has reached a

level of financial stability that he

never previously experienced. Mr. S

is leaving DTC with a solid Relapse

Recovery Plan that he wrote with

thoughtful insight as one of his final

DTC assignments. The DTC staff is

confident that Mr. S now has the

tools and determination to

successfully manage his mental

health. �

DTC participant Mr. S has

graduated from the DTC program

with flying colors! As a proud Veteran

of the U.S. Navy who served his

country from Oct. 1992 through June

of 1996, Mr. S came to the DTC with

the foundation for success that we

see in so many veterans. Mr. S was

stationed at NAS Oceana in Virginia

Beach, VA, where he was deployed

on the USS American. He worked as

a “plane captain” in charge of pre-

flight readiness for F14s. It is the

responsibility of the plane captain to

ensure the multi-million dollar

aircrafts and their pilots make it

safely back to the deck every day.

Although the discipline Mr. S

developed while serving in the Navy

certainly benefits him in many ways,

he suffered some setbacks due to

untreated mental illness and

substance abuse after leaving the

Navy. Mr. S was referred to the DTC

program in August 2013 after being

arrested and charged with felony

shoplifting. Mr. S has a dual

diagnosis of Major Depression and

prescription drug addiction and says

a relapse definitely played a role in

I really appreciate his honesty.” Mr. S

also expresses his gratitude for the

DTC program and the support of his

case manager on a regular basis. Mr.

S told Ms. McAleese that “DTC has

truly been a blessing. I don’t know

where I would be if I had not been

given this opportunity. I have grown

so much over the past year.” Mr. S

has grown, because he has

embraced the challenges and done

him work on issues

that had plagued Mr. S

for many years. His

DTC case manager,

Page McAleese,

challenged Mr. S to

take his recovery to

the next level by getting a sponsor.

Mr. S was reluctant to find a sponsor

but is now grateful for the added

accountability and the wisdom his

sponsor brings to the table.

Throughout his time in DTC, Mr. S

has faithfully called his case manager

every Monday for his weekly check-

in. According to Ms. McAleese,

“Conversations with Mr. S are

substantive and meaningful. If he is

struggling, he will let me know.

DTC has truly been a

blessing…I have

grown so much over

the past year. – Mr. S

RESOURCE INFORMATION – LEGAL Low-Cost Civil Legal Services DeKalb Legal Aid Society 404-377-0701 DeKalb Volunteer Lawyers Foundation 404-373-0865 Public Treatment Providers

DeKalb Community Service Board – Central Access 404-892-4646 Georgia Crisis and Access Line 1-800-715-4225 Clayton County Mental Health 770-4478-1099 Cobb Community Service Board – Central Access 770-422-0202 Fulton County Health Department 404-730-1212 Gwinnett County Mental Health Center 770-963-8141 Rockdale County Mental Health Center 770-918-6677

� � CHIEF MAGISTRATE

Berryl A. Anderson

SENIOR CHIEF

MAGISTRATE/FOUNDER

Winston P. Bethel

EDITOR

Rhathelia Stroud

CONTRIBUTORS

Rhathelia Stroud, Dr. Lisa M. Tait

Ingrid George, Page McAleese

DESIGN/PRODUCTION

Ingrid George, Dr. Lisa Tait

Rhathelia Stroud

During the fourth quarter, a total of forty-six (46) defendants were active participants in DTC. Of these forty-six, three (3)

defendants graduated from the DTC. One defendant was dismissed from DTC during this quarter for non-compliance or for

having symptoms later revealed which required services of greater intensity than the DTC can provide.

0 10 20 30 40 50

Quarter 1 - 2014

Quarter 2 - 2014

Quarter 3 - 2014

Quarter 4 - 2014

Dismissed

Graduated

Active

All participants in the Diversion Treatment Court must have an Axis I mental health diagnosis. Many have co-occurring

substance usage and alcohol abuse issues as well. The diagnostic breakdown for Axis I DTC active participants is as follows:

3% 6%

26%

18%

3%

44%

Axis I Diagnosis

ADHD

Anxiety

Bipolar

Depression

PTSD

Schizophrenia

SPOTLIGHT ON Jill Mays

Page 3

address the uniqueness of veterans entangled in the criminal justice system due to a mental illness that manifested

itself during or as a result of their military service. She specifically thanked Judge Anderson, Judge Stroud and Mr.

Forte, who all served as conference speakers for the JDTR’s “Unspoken Wounds Breaking the Silence” Conference in

2013, for their time, effort and expertise as dedicated members of the State Advisory Council for JDTR. The JDTR

was sponsored and directed through the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities and

aided countless veterans and their families. Ms. Mays lauded that during the operational period of the JDTR, an

additional ten Veteran Courts were developed throughout the state. JDTR federal funding support ended last fall, but

its impact will be long-standing.

Jill D. Mays (pictured at left, center), State Project Director for the

Jail Diversion and Trauma Recovery Priority to Veterans Program

(JDTR), awarded Chief Magistrate Berryl Anderson, Magistrate

Rhathelia Stroud (pictured left) and Diversion Treatment Court

Coordinator Bedford Forte (pictured left) with Certificates of

Appreciation for work with the Program. Ms. Mays recognized the

Diversion Treatment Court’s “excellent care and work with veterans”

and applauded the court’s development of a “Veterans Calendar” to

DTC Newsletter Issue 04 Volume XI December 2014

JOIN US FOR AN

OBSERVATION OF A

DIVERSION TREATMENT

COURT SESSION

You are welcome to observe a DTC

court session. DTC convenes every

Thursday at 9:00a.m., and the DTC

Veterans Calendar convenes every

2nd Thursday of the month at

10:30a.m.

DeKalb County Courthouse,

Magistrate Court of DeKalb County

First floor, Courtroom 1200 D

For further information, or if you

would like to receive the DTC

newsletter or submit an article for

consideration, contact:

Judge Rhathelia Stroud, DTC

Director

rstroud@dekalbcountyga.gov

Bedford “Chip” Forte, Program

Coordinator

bmforte@dekalbcountyga.gov

phone 404-371-9254

Ingrid George, Administrative

Assistant

ihgeorge@dekalbcountyga.gov

phone 404-371-2241,

fax 404-371-2683

Homeless Veterans Veterans make up as much as one-third of the nation’s population of homeless people. According to the National Coalition

for Homeless Veterans, these homeless veterans are mostly male (approximately 4 percent are female) and “the vast

majority are single, most come from poor, disadvantaged communities, 45 percent live with a mental illness and half have

substance abuse problems.” The gap between male and female veterans may be closing—the number of female veterans

who are homeless is rising. According to the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans, 56 percent of the homeless veteran

population is African American or Latino, even though these two groups represent 12.8 percent and 15.4 percent of the

population.

Some veterans lose their housing because they have a hard time adjusting to civilian life, which requires different job and

coping skills from those that sustain a service member during active duty. In some cases, untreated mental illness or brain

injury can make it difficult for someone to maintain a job. The job pool has also shrunk since the onset of the recession,

bringing the unemployment rate for veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan to 14.4 percent, according to the Washington Post.

Resources:

http://www.va.gov/homeless

This site provides homelessness prevention information as well as resources for homeless veterans and employment help.

“We Care:” Selfless Service to Our

Veterans tribute Brunch

The Diversion Treatment Court was a proud participant for the

2nd

Annual “We Care” Veterans Brunch sponsored by a

community partner, House of Hope Atlanta, Veterans’ Forces

of Hope Ministry. The brunch took place on November 8, 2014

in recognition of Veterans Day. It’s an annual undertaking by

the Forces of Hope Ministry to “honor our brave men and

women” and “to recognize the sacrifices veterans have made

to ensure the liberties we all enjoy in this country,” opined Dr.

E. Dewey Smith, Jr., pastor. This year the Veterans’ Ministry

expanded their tribute by not only serving brunch to the

Veterans’ Ministry expanded their tribute by not only serving brunch to the veterans, but they sought gifts to

benefit and uplift the veterans as well. Thanks to the generous contributions of yet another Diversion

Treatment Court community partner, Hope Atlanta, the ten veterans served by court staff received a Home

Depot bucket full of household utility products. It was a wonderful and worthwhile commitment to our

veterans and we proudly salute the Forces of Hope Veterans Ministry. We also look forward to an upcoming

collaboration with the ministry as Veteran Mentors for the Diversion Treatment Court’s Veterans Calendar.

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