Presiding Summit County Judge Susan Baker Ross earned a final certificate from the Ohio Supreme Court's Commission on Specialized Dockets for the Valor Court.
For the first time, the program has been successfully re-certified under her leadership.
The Valor Court program was created to help veterans overcome the obstacles that put them in the criminal justice system. Ross mentions how it affects them and the ultimate goal of the program.
"It's a specialty court that's designed to assist veterans who have become involved in the criminal justice system. So they may have physical, mental, psychological or addiction-type scars from their service... and as a result, sometimes they end up in the criminal justice system. Our goal is to help them get out of the system and stay out," Ross said.
PTSD and medical issues were brought up in association with how veterans act out and end up in the justice system.
The Valor Court is unlike the regular court system for a few reasons. One of the main differences can be seen through the services — or lack- thereof — in regular court.
Ross explained, "...they're not going to necessarily have housing provided... help finding a job, help resolving legal issues outside of the case in front of me. All of those things are things that we help them with."
Offender accountability, behavior change and recovery are focuses that courts with specialized dockets address through specific treatment needs of people charged with a variety of offenses.
Over two hundred certified dockets in Ohio courts have knowledge in areas such as:
- Mental Health
- Veterans Issues
- Drug and Alcohol Addiction
- Human Trafficking
- Domestic Violence
Specialized dockets throughout Ohio allow local courts to tailor and innovate programs to meet the needs and resources of their community due to the minimal level of uniform practices. These are the set certification standards.
Judge Ross states a lot of veterans are now aware of the services available to them and how the she and her team help them get service connected. She also explains how each veteran has their own individual needs.
"...So one person may need grief counseling. Another person may need mental health and need to have the thinking for a change and other programming which helps them to get back into or out of the criminal thinking mode. So each person gets their own thing."
When asked about how passionate she sounds, Judge Ross revealed how personal it is to her.
"Well, I'm personally in long term recovery. I am by the grace of God. Next month, I hope to celebrate 34 years of sobriety... when I ran for judge, I really wanted to be able to help people who were struggling with the same things I struggled with 30 years ago."
She continued by talking about how her journey has driven her to help others experience what she once did.
"I was already trying to help people in my courtroom to the best of my ability. But being able to talk to these folks every other week... I'm talking to these folks and helping them and encouraging them. And it is the bright spot of my week. I love my job, but being able to watch these folks transform their lives is such a rewarding experience."
Ross reiterated her goals and expressed how it feels seeing the veterans transform their lives.
"My goal there is just going to continue to be trauma-informed, to be able to keep an eye on what's going on within the court and make sure we're continuing to meet the needs of our participants... I really enjoy watching them go out of the community and give back the way that they used to... it's a wonderful thing."
