Court program to help veterans stay out of jail, get treatment expanding in Northeast Florida

The U.S. Justice Department says $4 million is going toward keeping veterans out of jail and get them the treatment they need instead.

The program has already shown success in Duval County. One veteran says it helped him get the assistance he needed to overcome his substance abuse instead of sitting in prison.

In 2002, Terrance Mchellon ditched his football dreams and put on an Army uniform. Over the course of 10 years, he served in Kuwait, Iraq and Afghanistan.

After getting out, Mchellon found himself on the wrong path, with the wrong crowd, depending on drugs to cope with post-traumatic stress disorder.

He was eventually arrested, but instead of facing prison time he found himself in a courtroom front of Magistrate John Sampson.

Sampson spent four years in the Marine Corps; he has helped dozens of veterans who have walked into his courtroom after committing nonviolent crimes.

Instead of being thrown in jail, they have a chance to rehabilitate.

Sampson said after three or more years, 95 percent of people won’t be charged again.

The state of Florida funds $200,000 for the program per year.

In the end, Sampson says the taxpayer wins.

“It costs maybe $7,000, $8,000 for someone to be in this program for a year, whereas incarceration costs $23,000-$32,000 a year," Sampson said.

This year, the program received an additional $112,000, which has been used to start the program in Nassau County.

Currently there are 50 people in the program, and 76 have graduated since it began four years ago.

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Cox Media Group