For Thomas Casados, joining the Navy at the age of 18 was the only alternative to serving time in jail.
Growing up in El Sereno, a working-class neighborhood in east Los Angeles with strong Latin roots and rough streets, Casados would occasionally get picked up by police for fighting. His mischievous ways finally caught up to him shortly before graduating high school.
“The judge told me I could either go to jail or sign up for the service and clean up my act,” Casados, now 67, said. “So, of course I signed up.”
As it would turn out, serving his country would ultimately provide him with a way to avoid serving a lengthy prison sentence, and possibly dying from a drug overdose.
Casados is now a peer support specialist for the Department of Veterans Affairs, helping Veterans struggling with substance abuse and homelessness. But before he ventured down this career path he had his own bouts with addiction, a sickness that resulted in several criminal convictions for drug possession and burglary. He believes his abusive relationship with drugs and alcohol was partially the result of a traumatic incident he experienced while in the service.
“What I finally came to realize is that [abusing drugs and alcohol] was my way of escaping my reality,” he said. “I wanted to be out of the norm.”
When he was in his early 40s, Casados once again found himself facing time in prison. While awaiting trial he learned of a diversion program for Veterans who suffer from PTSD, Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), or other injuries sustained during their enlistment. He was approached by a VA social worker, Gregory Cain, who presented him with a choice: either go through court-ordered treatment and stay sober with help from VA, or go back behind bars.
“I was sick and tired of going in and out of prison, all because of drugs,” said Casados, who now lives near Prescott, Ariz. “It’s like I tell the Veterans I work with now, all you’re doing is killing yourself slowly. With help, you can be so much more.”
Casados, who recently celebrated 22 years of sobriety, is a beneficiary of the Veterans Justice Outreach Program in which VA social workers like Cain make regular visits to local jails and courts in search of Veterans going through the legal system. Social workers review a Veteran’s legal and medical history to determine if the Veteran’s legal troubles stem from injuries suffered while in the service.
The goal is to help Veterans heal; a secondary purpose is to reduce recidivism rates.
Research has shown that more than half of the Veterans involved with the criminal justice system have either substance-abuse disorders or mental health problems like PTSD, depression, anxiety, according to the US Department of Veterans Affairs. Suffering from one of these conditions can lead to violent behavior, an inability to maintain stable relationships, and depression, all of which can make someone more likely to end up on the wrong side of the law.
One third of Veterans report having been arrested and booked into jail at least once, compared to fewer than one fifth of civilians. There are more than 181,500 Veterans in U.S. prisons and jails, reports the Council on Criminal Justice (CCJ). (The CCJ has formed a commission to study why so many Veterans end up in jail or prison and make recommendations for evidence-based policy changes.)
Data from the 2011–2012 US National Inmate Survey shows that 62 percent of Veterans in jails report four or more prior arrests and 68 percent of Veterans in prison report at least one prior episode of incarceration.
Clearly, action must be taken to rehabilitate Veterans charged with crimes rather than place them in prison, a system that cannot adequately treat and may only exacerbate mental illnesses or substance abuse disorders. The outreach and diversion program begins to address this urgent issue by focusing on rehabilitation, not retribution, for Veterans who commit non-violent offenses.
“Once you are exposed more to the system you see how one slip up or mistake caused by some of the trauma you’ve suffered can lead you to lose your freedom, your job, your home, or your family,” said Sergio Antoniuk, LCSW, supervisor of the Veterans Justice Outreach Program for the VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System. “I don’t think the average person understands that amount of trauma and stress that some of these Veterans are going through. The system can be cruel, and Veterans who are vulnerable need support to get back into the real world.”
Veterans who are granted military diversion typically spend up to two years in the program. There are periodic reports to the court, with the Veteran having to prove they are making progress in their journey, which can include completion of rehabilitation or anger management courses. Once they finish, their charges are dismissed by the court.
Veteran David Valles completed the diversion program and is now a peer support specialist helping other Veterans in Los Angeles County. Like Casados, he too abused drugs and alcohol, something he attributes to a traumatic incident he experienced during live-fire exercises as a cadet in the Army. He was offered diversion and spent several months living at the West LA VA in the Domiciliary Program, where he got clean and learned of better ways to cope with his PTSD.
He would eventually earn an associate degree in drug and alcohol abuse counseling. He credits Cain, the same social worker who help helped Casados, with guiding him through some challenging times. He finds purpose in being able to do the same for others.
“It’s been good to be able to help the guys going through what I went through,” said Valles, 61. “I can show them that you don’t have to lose your place in life. You can get back on solid ground.”
Valles admits it can be difficult. He stumbled the first time out, but has been sober for 12 years.
“I’m proof that it’s never too late to turn your life around.”
And it’s not just the Veteran who benefits from military diversion programs. The impact is felt throughout their family. Valles is grateful that he got sober before his mother died so that he could free her from the stress of worrying whether he would end up in prison or in the morgue.
For Cain, the peace he can provide to the families of Veterans is what makes his challenging job rewarding.
“Sometimes we’re the only connection that a mother has to her son,” Cain said. “When you can relieve that stress and they can go to bed knowing that possibilities exist, that someone is looking out for their child, you can go home that night feeling good, knowing that you’re making a difference.”
Those who are interested in learning more about the Veteran Justice Outreach Program can call 213-253-2677 Ext. 24793.
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