Middletown & Marijuana: Community Forum Nov. 18

Community Forum to Focus on What Middletown Should do About Marijuana

Dr. Kevin Sabet, an internationally known authority on marijuana, and Joee Lindbeck, Special Assistant to the RI Attorney General, will be featured speakers at “Middletown and Marijuana: What should we do?” -- an open community meeting to be held on November 18, sponsored by the Middletown Prevention Coalition.

“Our student surveys tell us that kids are starting to use marijuana in 6th and 7th grade and that the percentage of kids using marijuana continually increases throughout middle and high school years,” said Lori Verderosa, Coordinator of the Middletown Prevention Coalition. “Nearly 40 percent of our high school seniors reported smoking marijuana. We’re having this community meeting to let people know what’s going on – and to work together to find ways to help Middletown kids make healthier decisions.”

Sabet will keynote the event and talk about “The Seven Myths about Marijuana.” Sabet is an authority on drug policy and a consultant to numerous government and non-governmental organizations, including the United Nations. He also served as an official at the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) during three U.S. Administrations. Sabet, along with Patrick Kennedy, is co-founder of SAM, a nationwide organization that promotes “Smart Approaches to Marijuana.”

Lindbeck, who has worked closely with the RI Attorney General to develop proposed amendments to RI’s Medical Marijuana Act, will discuss loopholes in the current state legislation that put Middletown and other RI communities at risk. Lindbeck started her tenure with the Rhode Island Department of Attorney General in September 2005 and has served as the Department’s legislative liaison under Attorneys General Peter F. Kilmartin and Patrick C. Lynch.  Ms. Lindbeck was designated a Special Assistant Attorney General in 2006 and also serves as a prosecutor within the Criminal Division.

“We want to look at marijuana from a national, state and local level,” Verderosa said, “so that we have a more complete picture before we begin to outline action steps that will reduce the number of Middletown youth who smoke marijuana and, hopefully, convince younger kids not to even start.”

Verderosa will present findings from the 2012-13 Middletown Health and Wellness Survey, which assesses how many Middletown students use alcohol and drugs, their perceptions about use and other information that is used in planning prevention strategies and programs.

The community meeting will be held at Bazarsky Auditorium, O’Hare Academic Center Salve Regina University, Ochre Point Avenue, Newport, on November 18, 2013, 7:30 – 9 p.m.  For more information contact Lori Verderosa, MPC Coordinator, at (401) 845-0409 or msaptf@middletownri.com.