Veterans courts.

Existing law provides for the diversion of specified criminal offenders in alternate sentencing and treatment programs. This bill would authorize superior courts to develop and implement veterans courts for eligible veterans of the United States military with the objective of, among other things, creation of a dedicated calendar or a locally developed collaborative court-supervised veterans mental health program or system that leads to the placement of as many mentally ill offenders who are veterans of the United States military, including those with post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injury, military sexual trauma, substance abuse, or any mental health problem stemming from military service, in community treatment as is feasible and consistent with public safety. The bill would provide that county participation is voluntary. The bill would declare the intent of the Legislature that, where there are statutory requirements for certain education or counseling programs to be included in the terms of probation, the components of those counseling terms would be required to be incorporated into the treatment programs that are designed to treat the underlying psychological disorders rather than requiring them in lieu of the psychological treatments.