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Office of the Public Defender
435 North Orange Avenue
Suite 400
Orlando, FL 32801
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SUICIDE PREVENTION AWARENESS MONTH – NAMI GREATER ORLANDO
in NewsVeterans Day 2023 Parades, Events and More
in News2023 VETERANS DAY PARADE (Orlando, FL) / Saturday, November 11, 2023 / 11:00 AM – 01:00 PM
in NewsVA Announces Plan to Give Free Care to Any Vet in Suicide Crisis
in NewsCare available at any VA facility or any private facility will include up to 30 days of inpatient or crisis residential care, the Department of Veteran’s Affairs announced Friday. It will also include up to 90 days of follow-up outpatient care and ambulance rides to hospitals. The veterans will not need to be enrolled in […]
MDMA Therapy Gaining Popularity as PTSD Treatment
in MDMA, News, Post-Traumatic Stress DisorderBy Military.com MDMA, the active ingredient in the recreational drug ecstasy, has shown great promise in the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder. In fact, it showed such promise during safety trials that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) designated MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD as a “breakthrough therapy,” meaning the administration believes it may prove more […]
Clay County jail program offers incarcerated veterans skills to re-enter society
in News, Re-EntryBy Scott Johnson and Mary Baer So far, the program has graduated 2 inmates who have been released, and those former inmates have not re-offended GREEN COVE SPRINGS, Fla. – A new program inside the Clay County jail is helping military veterans who are now inmates get the skills they need to re-enter society. On Tuesday, […]
FROM ENLISTED TO INCARCERATED: WHY SOME VETERANS END UP BEHIND BARS
in Criminal Justice, Mental Health, News, Veterans Treatment CourtBy Prison Fellowship America is the “land of the free,” but many of those who served our country are now serving time. The Bureau of Justice Statistics estimates that there are about 180,000 United States veterans in our prisons and jails. This past Sunday, November 11, our country celebrated Veterans Day, a celebration to honor […]
Help for Vets With PTSD Who Are Convicted of Crimes
in Criminal Justice, Mental Health, News, Post-Traumatic Stress DisorderBy Margaret Wadsworth A diagnosis of PTSD can help veterans with lighter sentences, grounds for appeal, treatment in jail, and early parole. If you are a veteran suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and you have been convicted of a crime, your lawyer may be able to use your diagnosis of PTSD to help you […]
Deported Veterans, Stranded Far From Home After Years of Military Service, Press Biden to Bring Them Back
in Blog, Immigration, Legislation, News, Post-Traumatic Stress DisorderWritten by Jennifer Martinez-Medina affiliated with Repatriate Our Patriots, an advocacy organization that supports deported veterans, and is Co-Editor for Desolate Zine. Ivan Ocon thought he would be headed back to civilian life as a U.S. citizen after serving the U.S. Army in Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003. Ocon, who was born in Mexico, came […]
Veterans Defense Project
in Blog, NewsWritten by Denis McDonough with the Veterans Defense Project. For those of you that know me, you know that I am passionate about ensuring our fighting men and women of the Armed Forces get home safely after serving our Nation. They served our Nation with honor, courage and commitment. We have a responsibility to make […]
She Honored 60 Veterans Whose Families Couldn’t Visit Arlington National Cemetery
in Memorials, NewsEmily Domenech only planned to honor one person during her visit to Arlington National Cemetery on Memorial Day: her late grandfather, John Domenech, a career Army officer who fought in three wars. But by the time the cemetery closed Monday, she had honored 60 fallen veterans at their gravesites, on behalf of families across the […]
Memorial Day Honor Flights Canceled Because of Coronavirus Crisis
in Honor Flights, Memorials, NewsThousands of people who had planned to visit war memorials in Washington, D.C., this holiday weekend were forced to cancel this year because of the coronavirus pandemic. That includes veterans traveling with the nonprofit network Honor Flight, which recently suspended all trips at least until this fall. “Our veterans that travel with us are still […]
No Florida Veteran Left Behind
in NewsThe Florida Veterans Foundation has created https://helpflvets.org/ to help Florida veterans navigate during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
UCF Trauma Clinic Offers Virtual Series on Handling Stress
in Health Care, Mental Health, News, Post-Traumatic Stress DisorderUCF RESTORES — a trauma clinic best known for helping veterans and first responders overcome PTSD — is offering an ongoing Facebook Live series starting Monday to help the public handle the stress of the current COVID-19 pandemic. “This is unprecedented in our lifetime — this kind of long-term, high-level stress,” said psychologist Deborah Beidel, […]
Public Defender Robert Wesley Hosts PD9’s Spring Training 2020
in Criminal Justice, Mental Health, News, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Reintegration, Traumatic Brain InjuryLast week, Robert Wesley, Public Defender for the Ninth Judicial Circuit of Florida, hosted PD9’s 2020 Spring Training in Orlando, Florida. Videos of the presentations can be viewed below. PTSD and Application in Criminal Court from an Expert’s Perspective – Dr. Ryan Hall The purpose of this lecture is to discuss concepts of PTSD and […]