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Posted on Tue, May 29, 2012 : 12:54 p.m.

Statewide relay showcasing sobriety court success stops in Ann Arbor

By Amy Biolchini

A statewide motorcycle Relay for Recovery stopped in downtown Ann Arbor Tuesday morning to highlight the role of the 15th District Court’s sobriety court program and of drug courts across the state.

Yellow and white balloons adorned the railings of the municipal building on East Huron Street to welcome a team of motorcycle riders bearing the Michigan Association of Drug Court Professionals flag.

At the event Tuesday morning, a number of local judges, the Ann Arbor police chief and court staff gathered in front of the municipal building to watch as the flag rolled into town and to see the relay off on its next leg.

A tree was donated in honor of Washtenaw County's Sobriety Court from Fraleighs Landscape Nursery, and will be planted at the Washtenaw Alano Club’s facility at 995 North Maple Ave. in Ann Arbor, said Laura Hill, sobriety court coordinator.

The relay - in its inaugural year - began May 18 in Novi and will end in Cassopolis.

The Michigan event was inspired by the first cross-country National Motorcycle Relay for Recovery - which began May 1 in Santa Ana, Calif., and ended May 24 in Washington, D.C.

Drug courts take people “who have been a drain on the system for years … and get them the treatment they need,” said Chris Deutsch, director of communications for the National Association of Drug Court Professionals.

The drug courts transform the lives of habitual offenders and turn them into productive citizens, Deutsch said.

The relay is a way to bring awareness to drug court systems that have benefited people in communities across the country, Deutsch said.

Amy Biolchini covers Washtenaw County, health and environmental issues for AnnArbor.com. Reach her at (734) 623-2552, amybiolchini@annarbor.com or on Twitter.

Comments

spm

Tue, May 29, 2012 : 8:54 p.m.

Yeah, I had to read the headlines twice too. At first I read it as sobriety success ends at Ann Arbor. I figured it had to do with all the college kids skewing our town's sobriety numbers or something.

fjord

Tue, May 29, 2012 : 7:09 p.m.

I had to read that headline three times before I understood it. I kept getting hung up on the phrase "success stops in Ann Arbor."

Jimmy McNulty

Wed, May 30, 2012 : 12:50 p.m.

That made me LOL!