Volume 3, Issue 1

A Publication by the

March 2013

2013 Officers and Directors

Tennessee Association of Drug Court Professionals
President Mary Schneider Vice President Tracye Bryant Treasurer Brad Price Secretary Rick Taylor West Tennessee Director Angela Parkerson Middle Tennessee Director Marianne Schroer East Tennessee Director Judge Charles Cerny At Large Directors Ron Hanaver Kevin Batts Jill Barrett

TADCP WELCOMES NEW DIRECTOR

MARIE CROSSON CHOSEN AS NEW DIRECTOR
At the Board of Directors meeting on March 22nd, the members agreed to hire Marie Crosson as the part-time Director of TADCP. It is the Boards desire that by having a Director, TADCP will become the professional organization that we all hope for. Mrs. Crosson has shown us by her work with OCJP and as the Conference Planner last year that she has the energy, the know- how, and the spirit that TADCP needs to move us to the next level. Mrs. Crosson will be working with the Board on strategic planning, membership drives, getting the website ready to go live, and possibly grants and other types of funding resources. Of course, she will also be working with DMHSAS to continue to build our relationship. And then there is that conference! Please welcome Marie and send her any ideas, thoughts or suggestions you may have to: crossonconsultinggroup@gmail.com

Inside This Issue

Davidson Judges Host Benjamin Tucker 2 Coordinator Training at Paris Landing 2 Prescription Drug Take-Back Day 3

THE FACTS ON MARIJUANA

By the early 1990s, the scientific community had concluded from rigorous laboratory and epidemiological studies that marijuana is physiologically and psychologically addictive. Every drug of abuse has what is called a dependence liability, which refers to the statistical probability that a person who uses that drug for nonmedical purposes will develop a compulsive addiction. Based upon several nationwide epidemiological studies, marijuanas dependence liability has been reliably determined to be 8 to 10 percent (Anthony et al., 1994; Brook et al., 2008; Budney & Moore, 2002;Kandel et al., 1997; Munsey, 2010; Wagner &Anthony, 2002). This means that one out of every 10 to 12 people who use marijuana will become addicted to the drug. Importantly, the dependence liability of any drug increases with more frequent usage. Individuals who have used marijuana at least five times have a 20 to 30 percent likelihood of becoming addicted to the drug, and those who use it regularly have a 40 percent likelihood of becoming addicted (Budney & Moore, 2002). Based on this substantial body of empirical research, the American Psychiatric Association (APA) has long recognized cannabis dependence as a valid and reliable psychiatric disorder in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM). The DSM is the official psychiatric diagnostic classification system in the U.S. A diagnosis of cannabis dependence has been continuously included in the 3rd and 4th editions of the DSM since 1980 (APA, 1980, 1987, 1994, 2000). In the soon-to-be published 5th edition of the DSM, a cannabis withdrawal syndrome will now also be officially recognized as part of the diagnostic criteria for cannabis dependence. Two recent meta-analyses (advanced statistical procedures) have concluded that marijuana use during adolescence or young adulthood significantly predicts later involvement in criminal activity and criminal arrests (Bennett et al., 2008; Pedersen & Skardhamar, 2010). The risk of criminal involvement was determined to be between 1.5 and 3.0 times greater for cannabis users than for non-users. By far the greatest influence was on drugpossession offenses. However, cannabis use was also found to predict a wider range of criminal activity, including involvement in any type of criminal offense; and any type of drugrelated offense, including drug dealing, manufacturing and smuggling (Pedersen & Skardhamar, 2010).2 The results suggest that, all else being equal, cannabis users are at a statistically increased risk for associating with antisocial individuals, engaging in illegal conduct, and eventually getting a criminal record. Recommendations to Drug Courts: Marijuana is an intoxicating and addictive drug that poses serious medical risks akin to those of nicotine and alcohol. Although some physicians may consider it to have palliative indications, no national or regional medical or scientific organization recognizes marijuana as a medicine in its raw or smoked form. If marijuana becomes decriminalized or legalized in a given jurisdiction, this does not necessarily require Drug Court practitioners to abide its usage by their participants. The courts have long recognized restrictions on the use of a legal intoxicating substance (i.e., alcohol) to be a reasonable condition of bond or probation where the offender has a history of illicit drug involvement. If there is a rational basis for believing cannabis use could threaten public safety or prevent the offender from returning to court for adjudication, appellate courts are likely to uphold such restrictions in the Drug Court context. Individuals who possess a letter from a physician and/or a valid state-issued ID card for marijuana present a more challenging issue, but one that is probably also not insurmountable. If judges make these decisions based on a reasonable interpretation of medical evidence presented by qualified experts, it seems unlikely that Drug Courts which were specifically designed to treat seriously addicted individuals could not restrict access to an intoxicating and addictive drug as a condition of criminal justice supervision. Dr. Doug Marlowe

23rd District TADCP Day on the Hill 3 The Presidents Corner 3

TADCP
Mark Your Calendars! Drug Court Coordinators Training
June 5-7, 2013 Paris Landing State Park Paris, Tennessee

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V E T S N

27th Judicial District 10th Anniversary 4 Membership Application 4

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Tennessee Association of Drug Court Professionals

DAVIDSON COUNTY JUDGES HOST DEPUTY DIRECTOR FOR STATE OF THE WHITE HOUSE NATIONAL DRUG POLICY, BENJAMIN TUCKER
Davidson County Judges Daniel B. Court who suffer from severe and perEisenstein and Seth W. Norman hostsistent co-occurring mental health and ed the Deputy Director for State and substance abuse disorders. Tucker Local Affairs of the toured the DC4 White House Office Residential Drug of National Drug Court Facility, Policy, Benjamin attended a meeting Tucker, at a graduawith top state offition of the DC4 procials, was present gram. DC4, which for the graduation stands for Davidson ceremony, and County Drug Court Left to right: Judge Daniel B. Eisenstein, Judge Seth heard testimony W. Norman, Corrections Commissioner Derek Developing from program Schofield, Deputy Director Benjamin Tucker, Safety Character During graduates. The and Homeland Security Director Bill Gibbons, and Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services Confinement, is a Commissioner Doug Varney. program has sentencing alternabecome one of the tive for addicted non-violent felony most comprehensive problem-solving offenders. The overall structure of courts in the United States. Since it DC4 includes a residential program began in 1996, more than 600 people for offenders from the Mental Health have successfully completed DC4; 100% of graduates go on to obtain employment, and many continue to meet weekly for support long after completing the program. DC4 helps offenders deal with their addiction, find support, and get back on their feet. Prior to the availability of DC4, many would have found themselves back in jail, homeless, and/or still addicted to drugs.

Since it began in 1996, more than 600 people have successfully completed DC4; 100% of graduates go on to obtain employment...

LOOKING FORWARD TO LEARNING, SHARING, NETWORKING AND HAVING SOME FUN AT PARIS LANDING STATE PARK
TENNESSEE DRUG COURT COORDINATOR TRAINING SCHEDULED FOR JUNE 5-7
The Tennessee 2013, Drug Court Coordinator Training is scheduled for June 5th 7th at Paris Landing State Park. Paris Landing State Park is located in the western middle part of the state on the beautiful Tennessee River/Kentucky Lake. Take a look at all the activities the park has to offer by going to: http://www.tn.gov/environment/parks/ParisLanding/ or to download a park brochure: http://www.tn.gov/environment/par ks/brochures/pdf/parislanding.pdf. This years training will include sessions on Drug Court Best Practices; Developing Ethic Codes for Drug Court Teams; Legal Primer Interpreting Lawyer Language; Adding Specialty Tracks to your Drug Court Program. DMHSAS plans to spend time on the TN WITS data entry, Drug Court Funding for FY 14, Certification and Re-Certification Process, Drug Court Goals, and of course, plenty of time for networking and learning from one another. There will be a BBQ supper on Thursday night for all to enjoy and maybe even a few prizes. Hopefully the weather will cooperate so we can enjoy the terrace overlooking the lake and all that the park has to offer. Remember it is very important to get the RSVP form to Liz by WEDNESDAY, MAY 8TH 3:00 CST and to make your own reservations. If you have any questions or need assistance please contact Liz Ledbetter at 615-532-3411 or liz.ledbetter@tn.gov. Looking forward to a great turn out and informative training for all!

Dont forget to RSVP by Wednesday, May 8th by 3:00 CST and to make your own reservations.

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Tennessee Association of Drug Court Professionals

NATIONAL PRESCRIPTION DRUG TAKE-BACK DAY

SATURDAY, APRIL 27, 2013 10:00AM - 2:00PM
The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has scheduled another National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day which will take place on Saturday, April 27, 2013, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. This is a great opportunity for those who missed the previous events, or who have subsequently accumulated unwanted, unused prescription drugs, to safely dispose of those medications. In the four previous Take-Back events, DEA in conjunction with our state, local, and tribal law enforcement partners have collected more than 2 million pounds (1,018 tons) of prescription medications were removed from circulation. The National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day aims to provide a safe, convenient, and responsible means of disposal, while also educating the general public about the potential for abuse of these medications. Shortly after DEAs first Take-Back Day event two years ago, Congress passed, and President Obama signed, the Secure and Responsible Drug Disposal Act of 2010, which amended the Controlled Substances Act (CSA), allowing DEA to develop permanent, ongoing, and responsible methods for disposal. Prior to the passage of the Disposal Act, the CSA provided no legal means for transferring possession of controlled substance medications from users to other individuals for disposal. On December 21, 2012, DEA published in the Federal Register a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for Disposal of Controlled Substances. These regulations would implement the Secure and Responsible Drug Disposal Act of 2010 (Pub. L. 111-273) by expanding the options available to collect controlled substances from ultimate users for purposes of disposal to include: Take-Back events, mail-back programs, and collection receptacle locations. However, until these regulations become permanent, DEA will continue to hold Take-Back Days. Check with your local law enforcement agency to see if they are doing one of these events and partner with them! Great opportunity to network and educated people about your drug court!

THE PRESIDENTS CORNER

BY MARY SCHNEIDER
Here it isalmost Spring and Thank Goodness! All of us and Im sure all of you have been experiencing every sickness coming down the pike! It will be wonderful to get outside again and leave all this sickness behind! We started our year off very well. The TADCP Day On The Hill was very successful. We could have used more of you there, but maybe next year. I enjoyed meeting many new people and seeing everybody work so hard to get the word out about drug courts. We really had a team of warriors that day! Thanks to all of you that came and participated. A special thanks to Marianne Schroer and Jeri Holladay-Thomas for their hard work on this event. I am diligently working on our new website. I think everyone will be pleased. Hopefully it will be user friendly and have lots of information that is useful to you. I will let you know when we go live. I am still open to any suggestions or things you would like to see on the website. The Board of Directors for TADCP has hired Marie Crosson to be our Conference Planner again this year. Marie has already contacted several speakers and is working with NDCI to utilize their Speakers Bureau. Changes will be made this year based on your evaluations. However, overall, everyone seemed very pleased with our line-up last year and with the conference in general. Embassy Suites will be our venue again. I know some of you dont like the time of year that we are having our conference, but Embassy is giving us a great rate on our rooms and we cant get that rate any other time. Without that rate, many of you wouldnt be able to come. We also have to compete with Judicial Conferences, DA Conferences and PD Conferences. So we hope you will continue to support our conference in December. Liz Ledbetter with DMHSAS is working hard on the Coordinators Training in June. Let her know if you have a particular subject you need some training on, or any activities that we should do during the conference. This is always a great conference and the Coordinators really enjoy getting together and learning from each other. Remember, TADCP is YOUR organization. Let us know how we are doing. Contact your Director and share your ideas with them. We work for you and your drug court. Thank you for allowing us to serve and represent you. DRUG COURTS WORK! Regards, Mary Schneider, LAPSW

TADCP DAY ON THE HILL

JUST ANOTHER GREAT, SOBER DAY OF FUN IN THE 23RD DISTRICT!
On February 19th, a large group of drug court professionals descended on Capitol Hill to visit our representatives and spread the word about the good works that drug court do in the State of Tennessee. Marianne Schroer (Coordinator, 21st Judicial District) graciously hauled 135 bags of goodies from Meridees Bakery in Franklin, into the Legislative Plaza. I understand she had some help from the folks at TDOT! Each bag of goodies had a luscious pecan sticky bun coffee cake and a bag of assorted cookies paid for by your TADCP membership dues. A Drug Court Facts card was attached to each bag stating our accomplishments for FY 2011-2012. Our mission was to deliver a bag of goodies to each legislator, which we accomplished! I would like to thank the drug court professionals that showed up and really worked hard to see their representatives and talk to them about drug courts. Thanks to Jill Barrett (10th Judicial District), Barbara King Ladd, Heather Walsh, Michel Reynolds, Lindsay Konrad (12th Judicial District), Rick Taylor (23rd Judicial District), Marianne Schroer (21st Judicial District), Mary Schneider (16th Judicial District), Donna Vize (13th Judicial District), Tracye Bryant, John Merryman (Sumner County), Jeri Holladay-Thomas, Judge Seth Norman (DC4 Nashville) and Cynthia Richards (Montgomery County). All of us spent time talking to our representatives about the changes in judicial districts, more funding for drug courts, the Governors Safety Plan and much more. The representatives LOVED the goodies (as did their secretaries)! For as crazy as the Legislative offices are this time of year, I think we made a good impression. The general consensus was that this was a good idea and should be repeated next year. We hope more of you will join us next year!

TADCP MEMBERS ENJOY....

CONTINUING EDUCATION OPPORTUNITIES

(NAADAC AND CLE)

ANNUAL TADCP CONFERENCE QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER REPRESENTATION THROUGH THE TADCP LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE FREE AND DISCOUNTED TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES

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Tennessee Association of Drug Court Professionals

27TH JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT CELEBRATES 10TH ANNIVERSARY

The 27th Judicial District Drug Court recently celebrated its 10th Anniversary. Judicial Drug Courts are specialized court programs that engage in a team approach with court and community based professionals. These specialized courts provide therapy and treatment for people in the criminal justice system typically with nonviolent offenses that also have an addiction that exacerbates criminal behavior. The goal is to provide rehabilitation as an alternative to incarceration thereby saving tax dollars, reducing recidivism and improving the lives of the participants and their families. Pictured are graduates number one and one hundred. Congratulations to you both!

TENNESSEE ASSOCIATION OF DRUG COURT PROFESSIONALS MEMBERSHIP APPLICATION

A one-year membership to TADCP is $25 per person. An organizational membership from 1/01/2013 - 12/31/2013 is $200 for 2-10 members and $10 for each additional member greater than 10. Please make checks payable to TADCP.
Is this application for an individual membership or orgranizational membership? Individual Organizational Please specify the membership organization_______________________________________________________
1. Primary contact person Name Title Organization Drug Court Mailing Address City, State, ZIP Phone Number Fax Number E-Mail Address

A Publication by the

P.O. Box 639 McMinnville, TN 37111

COMPUTER
T
R A I N I N G
New Horizons Nashville has pricing set up with TADCP for computer training.
The following prices are for TADCP members: Access - $88 per level per student Word - $58 per level per student Excel - $68 per level per student OLA Access - $67 per user for Online Anytime
Feel free to call or email for any additional information:

Ph: 615-850-5919 Fax: 615-251-6925 Email: skomar@NHNashville.com