Knox County Veterans Treatment Court

The Knox County Veterans Treatment Court became operational in December 2013 as a veterans track within the Knox Recovery Court, run by Knox County Specialized Courts. It works on the hybrid drug and mental health court model described in the Tennessee entry on veterans treatment courts, adding VA health care, the Veterans Benefits Administration and volunteer veteran mentors. The Commission renews the state grant that keeps it running each spring; for July 2026 to June 2027 it is up to $330,000 from the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (R-26-5-905, May 18, 2026). Who can take part, per the court's published rules: adults 18 and over with a current charge in Knox County (transfers from elsewhere are considered case by case), a chemical dependence or mental health diagnosis, who enter voluntarily. A person is ineligible if the current charge or a past conviction involved carrying, possessing or using a firearm or other dangerous weapon, the use of force against another person, or death or serious bodily injury, or if the person has a prior violent felony conviction; a substantial history of drug sales also excludes. The court's pages set no discharge test. Getting in. The defense attorney picks up the application in the courtroom or prints it, and faxes it to the Recovery Court office; staff can often screen a defendant in court the same day. The office is at 900 E. Hill Avenue, Suite 480, Knoxville, TN 37915. The county's page gives (865) 522-0567 as the phone and (865) 659-6352 for the veterans court; the 2025 application gives (865) 437-0807 as the phone and 522-0567 as the fax, and the email [email protected]. What it asks and costs. Intensive outpatient treatment stepping down as the participant progresses, drug screens, weekly court and case management. The court says it rarely discharges anyone for a relapse; a positive screen brings a sanction. The programme usually runs 15 to 18 months (9 to 30 in practice). Participants pay a one-time $300 fee and the cost of their drug screens; the rest of the roughly $5,000 a year per participant comes from drug offender fees and grants.