On April 27th the health care team of the Clarke County Democratic Committee sponsored a public forum on the topic of drug abuse and its impacts on our healthcare and the legal system. The forum was held at a meeting room of the Clarke County Rec center from 10 a.m. until noon and included Q&A after presentations by each speaker.
Panelists included:
- Lauren Cummings, the Director of the Shenandoah Valley Substance Abuse Coalition
- Tim Coyne, a public defender who works with the Northwestern Regional Adult Treatment Drug Court
- Tony Roper,Clarke County Sheriff
- Mavis Taintor, candidate for VA General Assembly District 33
- Delegate Wendy Gooditis, VA General Assembly District 10
The forum provided an overview of the extent of the drug abuse problem in our area, with facts and statistics that you can review here in the embedded power point. Panelists also talked about the value of a drug court in dealing violators with drug problems. (Intro below is under two minutes and then each part varies from 20 minutes to 38 minutes)
Slide Show
Further Reading
Local Drug Court Tries to Break the Cycle of Addition (Nov. 25, 2017, The Winchester Star)
Addiction is a serious community issue (March 8, 2019, The Winchester Star)
The River Podcast interview with Lauren Cummings
Northern Shenandoah Valley Substance Abuse Coalition Receives $1 million to fight opioid abuse