narrator: veteran homelessness: it's a complex issue with a variety ofcontributing factors. several people in the community are in a position to helpveteran's who are homeless or at risk of homelessness... and you are one of them. altenburg: there is this ethicin the military of taking care of each other and neverleaving a buddy and i think we justhave to realize that
we can't leave veterans behind. narrator: homelessnessoften plays a role in veterans' encounters withthe justice system. providing treatmentinstead of incarceration can help change a veteran'slife. altenburg: not many people know that there has been a veterans justiceoutreach program developed by the veteransaffairs department in the last several years.
palmore: i didn't realize that,you know, things were going downhill for me until recently. i got arrested, i went to jail, you know, and then i had tofigure out what i'm going to do, because i can't go back home. nowi don't have a home. osborne: with homelessnessthere is a lot of lawenforcement issues of you being around, they'realways getting you out of the way.
and it was frightening, and it was scary. narrator: although youmay not recognize them as a veteran, you probably encounter veteranseveryday in your line of work. taking the time to ask if theyserved in the military can make a difference in their case and in their lives. altenburg: asking thequestion, "do you have any militaryexperience?" can be
very useful, becausethat experience can be very useful to a lawyerin representing someone. palmore: i think that if thepolice were to start asking or if they had asked me, i feel like the outcome, or youknow, different situations can be defused, and these people can really get help. there wouldn't be a next time,because they would have already got the help that theyneeded and could have beenon the right path.
altenburg: it 's importantfor lawyers especially, but paralegals and othersin the system so to speak, in the criminal justice system, to become aware of thefact that there is a veterans justice outreach program. and you may handle thecase like any other case, buttoo frequently those peopleare back in court months later or yearslater, because the real issue hasn'tbeen addressed.
and that is what thesealternative treatment courtsseek to do. narrator: if you encounter aveteran who is homeless or at risk of homelessness,take action. call 1-877-424-3838, chat online at va.gov/homeless, or make a referral to your localva medical center. altenburg: i think it'scritical that everybody in the criminal justice system,when they find out they are dealing with someone who hasmilitary experience,
they need at the very least toget them talking to somebody at veteran's affairs,at the very least. because they are to findresources there that they don't even know about. quite frankly, it is going tohelp those lawyers and those and those other people in the criminal justice system do their job better. osborne: had anybody had askedme had i ever served time inthe military, you know that quite possiblywould have made a difference.
because if they hadasked me that question i could have told them, "listen i served in the unitedstates army." but no one ever once asked me, "have you ever been in themilitary?" and i wish they had. â â ♪ music ♪
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