Watch Highlights of All Rise America!
U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder
On Wednesday, May 23, Attorney General Eric Holder delivered a commencement address to the Harvard Law School class of 2012. On Thursday, May 24, he spoke to graduates of the Washington, DC Superior Court Adult Drug Court . “I am speaking now to a group of graduates who are just as important,” he said. “You all have the capacity to change not only your lives, but this community and this nation as well.”
Attorney General Eric Holder joined ONDCP Deputy Director of Demand Reduction David Mineta, NADCP CEO West Huddleston, dignitaries, friends, family and a cadre of media in DC to celebrate the court’s 36 graduates and mark the end of All Rise America! The National Motorcycle Relay for Recovery.
West Huddleston kicked off the graduation by recounting the 3,200 mile journey across the country that was culminating with the day’s event. Holding up the All Rise Gavel he told the court that the purpose of All Rise America! was to make sure that every citizen was aware of the life-saving work of Drug Courts. Huddleston thanked the Attorney General for his continued support of Drug Courts and presented him with the gavel, the final hand-off of All Rise America!
NADCP CEO West Huddleston hands All Rise Gavel to Attorney General Eric Holder.
The Attorney General called Drug Courts “an essential part of our larger national strategy for ensuring public safety, protecting the American people from crime and violence, and giving better outcomes for those involved with the criminal justice system. This Administration, and my boss, President Obama, remain deeply committed to expanding [Drug Courts].”
One-by-one the Honorable Frederick Weisburg called the graduates up to receive their diplomas and have their cases dismissed. With the Attorney General looking on they addressed their community, thankful for the support they received. It was as festive a graduation as we had seen, complete with thunderous applause, tears, hugs and smiles. In the coming days there would be plenty of time for reflection, but on this day we were content to sit and watch each graduate accept their certificate and prepare to embark on their new lives of recovery.
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