(Pictured: Former Student Advisor Todd Mihill)
A blog post written by former student advisor Todd Mihill for the Mason Veterans and Servicemembers Legal Clinic (“M-VETS”) was cited in a Report to Congress from the Reentry Coordination Council in April 2022. The Council members include the Attorney General for the U.S. Department of Justice, Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Secretary of Labor, Secretary of Education, Secretary of Health and Human Services, Secretary of Veterans Affairs, and Secretary of Agriculture.
The Report aims to provide “Coordination to Reduce Barriers to Reentry: lessons learned from COVID-19 and beyond.” As noted in the Report, incarcerated individuals “face a number of barriers to success, including housing insecurity, inability to access health care, food insecurity, and barriers to education and employment. These longstanding barriers were exacerbated during the COVID-19 pandemic and compounded by additional hurdles, including limited access to government-based services and support.” However, the Report indicated that despite these longstanding barriers, “new resources and creative solutions emerged, providing innovative approaches to combating barriers to reentry and to assisting justice system-impacted individuals.”
Mr. Mihill wrote the cited Blog article in May 2019 entitled “Marijuana Discharges: A Level Playing Field?” In the Report, the Council cited Mihill’s Blog to discuss veteran-specific reentry barriers concerning veterans who are not eligible for Department of Veterans Affairs services due to their discharge characterizations being dishonorable, bad conduct, or other than honorable. The Report can be viewed at the following link:
https://www.justice.gov/opa/press-release/file/1497911/dl
M-VETS Director Timothy MacArthur stated: “This is incredible recognition for Todd. To be cited as a source in a report to Congress by a Council comprised of prestigious members is a significant achievement and a testament to Todd’s scholarly article. This is precisely why M-VETS requires student advisors to write blog posts while they are students in the clinic.”
Todd’s Blog post can be viewed at the following link on the M-VETS website:
https://mvets.law.gmu.edu/2019/05/13/marijuana-discharges-a-level-playing-field/
M-VETS provides free legal representation to veterans, active duty service members, and their families while allowing law students to gain practical legal experience under the supervision of practicing attorneys. M-VETS provides representation in various matters, including Virginia civil litigation, uncontested divorces, consumer protection matters, wills, and powers of attorney. It also assists with issues before the VA and various administrative boards, including discharge upgrades, record corrections, military pay and entitlement matters, and VA disability benefit appeals.