WILLOUGHBY, Ohio — Rehabilitation after incarceration. When one veteran found himself before a Willoughby judge, he also found himself with an opportunity.
It didn’t come easy. But James Ancell recently completed the Willoughby Municipal Veterans Treatment Course. It was a special occasion two years in the making when Ancell graduated from the course Thursday. That’s how long he’s been clean and sober.
“This program is the greatest program that was ever started,” he told the packed courtroom. It was full of his fellow veterans, city leaders, and the support system he had spent the last two years building. That included Al Raddatz, the CEO of Sub Zero Mission.
“You were an overdose away from being gone for us for good,” Raddatz said of the time he first met Ancell.
After a failed drug test, the judge sent Ancell to jail for 47 days. When he got out, he went into a sober living facility for 90 days. That was when Raddatz noticed a shift.
“That’s when I saw you really start to change,” Raddatz said.
The specialized docket is designed to get veterans in the justice system the help they need, including regular drug screenings, parole officer meetings, and a lot of community service hours.
“Just had a good support,” Ancell said. “I mean, they didn’t treat you like you were a criminal. They treated you with the utmost respect.”
Now that Ancell has graduated from the course, he said he’s interested in becoming an alcohol and drug counselor to help others dealing with the same challenges he’s overcome.
“It works,” Ancell said. “You’ve gotta want to change. That’s the main thing.”
The veterans court is one of more than 200 specialized dockets in Ohio, including programs for alcohol and drug abuse, domestic violence, and human trafficking.
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