SAINT PAUL, Minnesota – Today, the House Veterans and Military Affairs Division held a remote hearing to discuss the Veterans Restorative Justice Act. The measure, authored by Rep. Rob Ecklund (DFL – International Falls), includes new sentencing recommendations for veterans who have experienced PTSD or another service-related disorder to refer them to treatment rather than jail or prison.
“Veterans courts are a proven model that ensures those who have served our nation have an opportunity to get the mental health or substance abuse treatment they need to turn their lives around while holding them accountable,” said Rep. Ecklund, chair of the House Veterans and Military Affairs Division. “For many young people who have experienced trauma during their service, incarceration simply doesn’t help the problem. It’s time to advance this bipartisan legislation so our state can be a leader in helping our veterans – who have made wrong decisions – have a second chance at a bright future.”
The legislation creates an alternative sentencing option for veterans with service-connected trauma, substance abuse, or mental health conditions who commit certain crimes under a certain severity threshold. Upon pleading guilty and agreeing to terms, veterans can be eligible for redirection into diversion programs, participation in veteran-focused programming, probation instead of jail time, and treatment programs. After successful completion of probation and related veterans programming, a veteran can be eligible to have crimes eliminated from their record.
The Veterans Restorative Justice Act has earned support from Governor Walz, prosecutors, defense attorneys, veterans advocates, and judges. Despite such widespread support – including from legislators of both parties – the Minnesota Senate has repeatedly failed to approve the legislation. During the recent special legislative session, the Senate failed to advance the bill on a party line vote, with the Republican majority blocking the measure.
Video of the hearing will be available on House Public Information Services’ YouTube channel.