Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court Community Veterans Court

The Metropolitan Court's Community Veterans Court in Albuquerque takes veterans of any era and any discharge, and Guard and Reserve members, charged with a misdemeanour in Bernalillo County, into a supervised programme with VA treatment, frequent testing and a veteran mentor. Call the programme manager at 505-938-4243.

Also called: veterans treatment court, veterans court, Community Veterans Court, Metropolitan Court, Metro Court, misdemeanor, Judge Blea-Rivera, Albuquerque, mentor.

For: Veteran or service member.

Where it applies

Written for the jurisdictions listed here.

Bernalillo County, NMCounty

The Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court, the county's court for misdemeanours, began a veterans programme with the Albuquerque VA Medical Center in 2012 under Judge Sandra Engel, and its Community Veterans Court began admitting participants in May 2016. It graduated its 200th participant in 2025. Who can join. "Veterans of military service from any era regardless of discharge status", and members of the National Guard or the Reserves, charged with a misdemeanour in Bernalillo County, who volunteer. There is no discharge test and no rating. The programme. Judge Felicia Blea-Rivera leads a team of two probation officers, an assistant district attorney, a public defender and the VA's Veterans Justice Outreach coordinator. Treatment for substance use or mental illness such as post-traumatic stress comes mainly from the VA hospital or a VA clinic. Participants see the judge one or more times a month, take frequent random drug and alcohol tests, report to a probation officer and are paired with a mentor who is also a veteran. How to get in. Ask defence counsel to raise it, or call the programme manager at 505-938-4243.

Thresholds

Thresholds for Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court Community Veterans Court
Gate	Rule
Any veteran, Guard or Reserve member charged with a misdemeanour here	Any era and any discharge, charged with a misdemeanour in Bernalillo County. No rating is needed.

Sources

Updated

Last updated 2026-10-03.

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Disclaimer

VetTOC is not affiliated with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs or the Department of Defense. Information is for reference only and is not an eligibility determination. Verify with VA, the relevant state or territory, or an accredited VSO.