The Ingham County Court Martial celebrates its first graduates

LANSING, Mich. (WILX) – Three teenagers with troubled pasts celebrated a major milestone Wednesday. After weeks of hard work and dedication, they became the first ever graduates of the Ingham County Court of Arms.

“As humans, we all make mistakes and it’s just how you bounce back from them,” said one graduate.

The program was led by judge Rosemary Aquilina. It gives teenagers caught carrying guns who weren’t violent a second chance at life.

“The goal is to rehabilitate them, and they go from a felony to a misdemeanor, and we look at the background, we look at why did this happen? How can we stop this?” said judge Aquilina.

To get a diploma, teenagers have to put in mental and sometimes physical work.

Many of the kids who went through the gun court ended up repairing homes with the Mikey23 Foundation, a foundation created in honor of founder Michael McKissick’s late son Mikey. Continuing his legacy, McKissick now helps others who are struggling stay out of trouble.

“I always tell kids, especially kids who come to court with a gun, it’s not how you fall, it’s how you get back up,” McKissick said.

Judge Aquilina and McKissick serve as role models for teenagers, inspiring them to be the best they can be.

“I realized that sometimes in life you have to go through certain things to get to where you want to be,” said the graduate.

Judge Aquilina hopes to start a gun court for adults. It is not yet known when it will start.

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