Tuscarawas drug court receives state certification, grant funds, new officers

Tuscarawas drug courts recently received state certification, grant funds and new Community Corrections Program Officers to better fight against substance abuse disorders as they relate to criminal activity through the Changing Offender Behavior through Rehabilitation and Accountability Court.

Judge Elizabeth Lehigh Thomakos received her third certification from the Ohio Supreme Court’s Commission on Specialized Dockets for the COBRA Court of the Tuscarawas County Court of Common Pleas, General Trial Division. To receive the certification, Thomakos had to submit an application, undergo a site visit and provide program materials in response to certification standards.

The COBRA Court is funded in part by a 2020 Specialized Docket Subsidy Project Funds grant from the Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services. $30,000 was awarded to the local Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services Board for use by the specialized docket court. Participants in COBRA are supervised through the Community Corrections Program, which is the probation department for the Court of Common Pleas. The officers provide supervision for all of the felony offenders in various stages of the criminal justice proceedings.

The Community Corrections program recently hired new Probation officers Rachel Fetty, Brian Parrish and Elizabeth Aslanides. Fetty was formerly a probation officer with the Tuscarawas County Juvenile Court. Parrish has U.S. military experience and was formerly a security worker at Cleveland Clinic Union Hospital. Aslanides comes to the court from Stark Regional Community Corrections Center.

For information: 330-365-3299; stephenson@co.tuscarawas.oh.us.

SUBMITTED BY ELIZABETH STEPHENSON