Eleventh Judicial District of TN

The Eleventh Judicial District is one of 31 judicial districts in Tennessee and has jurisdiction in Hamilton County.  The Eleventh Judicial District has three trial courts in its boundaries: a circuit court, a chancery court and a criminal court.

The formation of a Veterans Treatment Court (VTC) for Hamilton County is being considered to build upon successes of its Drug/Recovery Court programs.

According to the Department of Veterans Affairs National Center for Veterans Analysis and Statistics, the Eleventh Judicial District veteran population iss 25,935 in 2015.

     Veterans Treatment  Court Mentor Orientation

Volunteers from the Eleventh Judicial District of Tennessee travel to Knoxville to attend the East Tennessee Veterans Treatment Court Mentors Orientation on April 9-10, 2015.

Lead by Hamilton County Veterans Treatment Court Coordinator Edwin Holmes, Chris Dooley and Chattanooga City Council Chairman Jason "Chip" Henderson.  Joe Fowler, Thomas Tansil, Wayne Watson and Danny Jones also participated.

                                                             Veterans Treatment Court Proposed In Hamilton County

November 14, 2015.

A new court specifically designed to give veterans charged with minor crimes a second chance could be coming to Hamilton County.  Those pushing for this veteran's court want to get them help without letting them get away with breaking the law.

When veterans find themselves on the wrong side of the law, a veterans court would give them another option.
"The court itself is there to assist veterans to make sure that they get the appropriate counseling, which may be available to them through the VA, which will be specialized with their particular needs. It is one to provide that structure oversight that maybe they need cause a judge is always looking at them and making sure they accomplish things," said Christopher Dooley.  Read more.

First Published VTC Study Shows Incredible Success!

The Community Mental Health Journal has released the first published study on Veterans Treatment Court and the results are outstanding. Researchers from the Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services tracked 86 veterans involved with Veterans Treatment Court, all of whom were diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). They found that 89.5% remained arrest-free during their time in the program and concluded that the veterans participating in Veterans Treatment Court experienced significant improvement with depression, PTSD and substance abuse as well as with critical social issues including housing, emotional well being, relationships, and overall functioning.

The study further concluded that mentoring from volunteer veterans is particularly effective. Veterans who received mentoring not only experienced better clinical outcomes, they reported feeling more socially connected.  

“Veterans reported better treatment outcomes and quality of life over time when involved in the Vet Court,” the study states. “When provided programs and services that fostered recovery, veterans improved markedly on all study measures. Veterans particularly improved when provided a combination of trauma-specific treatment, peer mentor services, and medication. The importance of trauma-specific therapy and positive peer role models may be important for veterans with combat exposure who have re-integrated into a society unfamiliar with the struggles associated with combat experience.”  Access the full study here.

Be a VTC Mentor

If you are interested in becoming a VTC mentor please Visit a Mentor Veterans Treatment Court for FREE.

VTC Mentor Coordinators

Chris Dooley @ 702-701-2858

or Edwin Holmes @ 423-635-9913

at 865-336-2624 office

complete the form below.

This is the history of the Knox County Veterans Treatment Court inception and the Knoxville Regional Veterans Mental Health Council (Council) and the motto “all we can do is help”

Judge Cerny provided an email to the Council on December 10, 2014 which was included in the Council’s presentation to the Tenth Judicial District of Tennessee members in Madisonville, Tennessee.

                                                                         Click here to read Judge Cerny’s email

DON’T LET FEAR STOP YOU FROM DOING SOMETHING THAT COULD REALLY POSITIVELY IMPACT YOUR COMMUNITY!!