MANSFIELD, Ohio — A flag raising ceremony was held Wednesday outside the municipal building in honor of the Mansfield Municipal Veterans Court.
The flag was donated by Judge Jerry Ault and Judge Frank Ardis, Jr.
“We’re very honored to have the veterans here to help us with this ceremony,” said Ault. “As you can see, we have one of the best, if not the best veterans program.”
The veterans court was formed and began operating in September 2009 and was the first of its kind in Ohio and third in the nation. It was developed to reduce crime, incarceration and recidivism by linking veterans to veteran-specific services. To increase success, veterans are also linked with Veteran Service representatives and veteran peer mentors who will educate and assist them in obtaining benefits and support services available only to veterans.
Tony DeLong, executive director at the Richland County Veterans Service Commission, noted, “The mentors take great care of those participants that are involved in veterans court, making sure that they get to their appointments and receive the medical care that they deserve.
“They’re also a great outreach, helping those veterans connect to my office at the veterans service commission, so we can apply for the federal, state and local benefits that they deserve.”
The veterans court is a voluntary Specialty Court Docket program providing intense supervision of offenders that involves regularly scheduled review hearings with the judge, home visits, curfew checks, drug and alcohol testing and increased communication with the treatment providers.
The program requires at least one year of supervision and treatment, which is organized into four phases, corresponding to individual development.
Ardis estimated that the veterans court has a 93-94 percent success rate.
“As a matter of fact, we had [state] Rep. Mark Romanchuk this morning as an observer and he was very delighted about it and indicated he would offer us help in the future any way he could,” he said.
Over 169 participants have been served to date and 118 have successfully completed the program.
“The program really changes these veterans’ lives,” DeLong said.
“As you can see, we have one of the best, if not the best veterans program,” said Judge Jerry Ault.
