Cleveland Municipal Court
216 664 6787 / 216 789 2597
ference@cmcoh.org     www.cmcoh.org

(Cleveland) – The 64th Graduation Ceremony of the Greater Cleveland Drug Court, under the direction of Cleveland Municipal Court Judge Lauren C. Moore, will take place Wednesday, February 26 at 4:30 p.m. in the Cuyahoga County Jury Assembly Room located on the fourth floor of the Justice Center.

A total of 18 people are expected to graduate, which brings the total number of people who have successfully completed the program to 1,794 since it began in 1998.

The keynote speaker for the ceremony will be Seti Richardson, who for the past 24 years has worked for the Cleveland Urban Minority Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Outreach Program (UMADAOP).

Now sober for 35 years, Richardson has put his prison past behind him and has helped thousands of men and women on parole, probation and undergoing treatment with his street savviness and professional skills.   A graduate of the Maxine Goodman Levin College of Urban Affairs at Cleveland State University, he’s now certified as a relapse prevention specialist, quality mental health specialist, chemical dependency counselor and certified life and recovery coach.

Richardson says he stays busy and does all the right things to stay healthy so he can continue his much-needed work in the community.

“I tell people if you look up, you can get up.”

Participants in the Greater Cleveland Drug Court generally spend 12 to 20 months in the program. Longer cases may occur due to the fact that opiate addicts generally need more treatment time.  This year, four of the graduates entered the program with felonies, while the others were charged with lesser offenses.

Specialized dockets like the Greater Cleveland Drug Court are dedicated to handling offenses related to substance abuse, and use a combination of techniques for holding the offenders accountable while also addressing the underlying causes of their behavior.

There are more than 150 specialized dockets in Ohio. In 2014, this particular docket was certified by the Supreme Court of Ohio. The Drug Court Program began in the Cleveland Municipal Court in 1998 and has since expanded to other parts of Cuyahoga County.