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CONTACT PERSON: VALERIE WILLARD
PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER
(504) 310-2590
| JANUARY 30, 2008 |
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
Retired U.S. Army General and former Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), General Barry Richard McCaffrey, addressed over 450 drug court professionals in New Orleans today at the 10th Annual Louisiana Association of Drug Court Professionals Training Conference at the Westin New Orleans Canal Place.
General McCaffrey was joined by the Chief Executive Officer of the National Association of Drug Court Professionals (NADCP), West Huddleston; NADCP Board Chairman, the Honorable Chuck Simmons; and Ken Robertson from the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment at the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration in Washington, D.C. Louisiana officials including Roseland Starks; Director, Louisiana Rehabilitation Services and Whalen Gibbs, Assistant Secretary, Department of Public Safety and Corrections also addressed the group.
The Conference was co-sponsored by the Louisiana Supreme Court Drug Court Office which currently supports 45 local drug court programs statewide. These 45 programs provide judicial oversight and treatment to approximately 2,900 adult and juvenile drug court clients each month.
“Judges, district attorneys, public defenders, treatment providers, and others around the State are helping to change the lives of individuals and families who suffer from drug and alcohol addiction,” said Louisiana Supreme Court Justice Catherine D. “Kitty” Kimball, “and in doing so, they are changing communities. We are very grateful for the support we receive from our federal and state partners who make it possible for our courts to do this critical work.”
During the Conference, Judge Sharon Ingram Marchman, who serves as both the adult and juvenile drug court judge in the 4th Judicial District in Monroe, Louisiana, was awarded the prestigious Jake Hadley Award for her dedication and outstanding service to the drug court field. Last year’s Jake Hadley Award recipient, Jefferson Parish Juvenile Drug Court Judge Ann Murry Keller, presented the award.
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