Southwestern Pennsylvania is home to more than 300,000 veterans, and Allegheny County has the highest concentration in the state.

So it made sense to start a program for veterans facing legal trouble in Pittsburgh.

On Monday, U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter, D-Pa., hosted a congressional field hearing looking at the potential benefits of implementing veterans courts across the state and country.

The first session for Allegheny County's veterans court was held in November, and there are currently about two dozen veterans enrolled. Those numbers are likely to skyrocket as word of the program gets out, said Allegheny County Judge John A. Zottola.

The goal is to integrate a wide array of services to help veterans in trouble with the criminal justice system.

"We find that our team approach has been very successful," Judge Zottola told the congressional panel.

Joining Mr. Specter were U.S. Reps. Jason Altmire, D-McCandless, and Tim Murphy, R-Upper St. Clair.

Veterans who face misdemeanor or felony charges -- ranging from driving under the influence to burglary, arson and assault -- can be eligible for the program. In addition to strict probation, they are teamed up with a mentor to provide support throughout the process.

The creators of these types of courts -- which are now running in Pittsburgh, Scranton and Philadelphia -- have heard criticism that veterans who have committed crimes should not be treated any differently than other accused criminals.

But the panel members and congressmen at the hearing disagreed.

"This isn't special treatment," said state Supreme Court Justice Seamus McCaffery. "This is a continuation of treatment of a wound."

"In my own view, we owe a great debt to the veterans we haven't begun to repay," Mr. Specter added.

Judge Zottola, who supervises the Allegheny County veterans court, made it clear that the service members in the program are not simply getting a slap on the wrist.

The probation is more rigorous than that in the regular criminal justice system, and defendants are often required to meet with their probation officer twice each month, on top of whatever counseling or meetings they must attend.

Michael Danny, 46, served in the Marine Corps from 1984 to 1987. He began drinking while he was in the service and has struggled with alcohol since.

He was referred to veterans court after a charge of driving under the influence and a series of domestic disputes.

With the combined help of veterans court -- working, too, with the Department of Veterans Affairs -- Mr. Danny feels he has turned the corner.

He attends a lot of classes, including one that addressed how alcohol impacts him and his family.

Mr. Danny has been sober since November.

"So you think you're over the hump?" Mr. Specter asked.

"I hope so," he replied.

Justice McCaffery said that programs like veterans courts don't just help the defendant.

"It's so much cheaper to keep people out of jail. We're saving people money. It's the right thing to do, and it's cost-effective."

Judge Zottola agreed. He cited as an example Allegheny County's mental health court. That program began in 2001 with 16 defendants. There are now 330.

Over a two-year period, mental health court resulted in some $3.6 million in savings for Allegheny County, he said. Further, the recidivism rate there is only about 15 percent -- much lower than that of traditional court models.

Mr. Murphy quoted several statistics related to post-traumatic stress disorder and other combat-related problems during the hearing.

Nearly 20 percent of all returning service members from tours in Iraq and Afghanistan have either PTSD or major depression, he said, citing a Rand study. Less than half of those seek medical attention.

"For those who have fought for this nation with courage, they should not have to fight this system with discourage," Mr. Murphy said. "We must make sure we have a justice system that understands their problems -- not coddles them."

Al Mercer, the executive director of the Veterans Leadership Program of Western Pennsylvania, told the panel that currently returning service members are facing the same problems still being fought by those who served in Vietnam.

"We're losing the battle out there," he said. "We're seeing way too many vets in need of homes; way too many vets in need of jobs; and way too many vets in need of health care.

"We need to work better together."

While Mr. Specter appeared Downtown, his Democratic challenger, Rep. Joe Sestak, was in Brentwood, assailing the incumbent's congressional record on veterans' issues.

Their events Monday touched on political strengths of both candidates. Mr. Sestak, a retired admiral, is the highest ranking former member of the armed forces to serve in Congress. Mr. Specter is a former chairman of the Veterans Committee in the Senate where he was able to use his influence for Pennsylvania projects.

In his last re-election, Mr. Specter was endorsed by the Veterans of Foreign Wars' national political action committee. While chairman of the veterans' panel from 1998 to 2002 and from 2004 to 2006, his staff reported, the VA's budget rose by 28 percent, and then by 16 percent.

But speaking at a VFW post on Route 51, Mr. Sestak argued that the incumbent had presided over periods when VA funding failed to keep up with the needs of veterans. The Delaware Valley congressman said that the administration's casework backlog had climbed throughout Mr. Specter's time as the senior member of the panel, reaching 600,000 in 2004 as demands of returning Iraq and Afghanistan War veteran increased.

Mr. Sestak also chided Mr. Specter for not resisting Bush administration policies that toughened income eligibility rules for VA health coverage. The income guidelines, he said, meant that as many as a million veterans were left ineligible for VA services.

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