OAKLAND FORUM TO FOCUS ON TEEN DRINKING, DRUGS

Seminar aims to alert youth, parents to consequences of substance abuse

A federal judge will host a free public seminar next week in Oakland
for parents, teachers and other community leaders concerned about the
rising tide of teen alcohol and drug abuse.

U.S. District Judge Saundra Brown Armstrong of Oakland will moderate
the two-hour event, starting at 5 p.m. Wednesday in the auditorium of
the Oakland Museum, 1000 Oak St.

Taking part in the panel discussion will be Alameda County Presiding
Juvenile Court Judge Carl Morris, Oakland Police Chief Wayne Tucker,
Alameda County Deputy Juvenile Probation Chief Deborah Swanson,
Alameda County Public Defender Juvenile Section head Sheri
Schoenberg, Alameda County District Attorney Juvenile Section chief
Matthew Golde, Alameda County Health Care Services Agency Deputy
Director Alex Briscoe and Assistant U.S. Attorney Douglas Sprague,
Oakland's top federal prosecutor.

The seminar, co-sponsored by the judge and by the Oakland law firm
Reed Smith LLP, is intended to be the first in a series.

Previous substance-abuse prevention and community justice programs
targeting adolescents have yielded good results, Armstrong said in a
news release, but "we believe we can have an additional impact on the
local epidemic of teen drinking and drug use by involving and
educating parents and other adults about the consequences of this
behavior for their children and for themselves."

Reed Smith attorney Jayne Fleming said parents "are often unfamiliar
with what liabilities they may have for their children's behavior,
particularly when their children injure other people, damage others'
property or become involved in illegal acts under the influence of
alcohol or drugs."

This seminar will answer those questions, she said, and offer
information on how and where parents can get help for their children.

Please R.S.V.P. to ckahn@reedsmith.com, or call Cheryl Kahn at (510)
466-6807; although the event is free, space will be reserved for
those who R.S.V.P.