Helping Vets: The Diversion Docket – WAVY-TV

The City of Chesapeake, Virginia, has begun implementing a diversion program that creates a mental illness docket, which would include special considerations for veterans involved in the criminal justice system. After being identified by the jail or the public defender as a veteran or as a defendant with mental illness, the defendant will plead guilty before a special judge on the docket. While this diversion programs offers immediate treatment rather  than jail time, mental health experts have expressed concern over the requirement of surrendering guilt. Watch the full report.