The Spokane Therapeutic Courts Foundation was formed in 2012 by the current Board [ as of August 2014 ] of Directors. Through their efforts, the voluntary diversion programs that the foundation supports give drug addicted and mental health-challenged persons the opportunity to enter a court supervised treatment program while preventing a felony on their record. The Spokane County Drug Court has over 500 graduates to date whose recidivism rate hovers under 15%. This number is in comparison to a recidivism rate of over 75% for the vast majority of offenders with addictions outside of these programs.
The Mission of the Spokane County Therapeutic Courts Foundation (TCF) is to support and help with the growth of the Felony Drug Court and Mental Health Court programs of Spokane County.
To enhance and strengthen the quality of our Spokane Community life by
Judge Clarke graduated from WSU in 1976 and Gonzaga School of Law in 1979. He was elected to the Spokane County District Court bench in 1998 and then elected to the Spokane County Superior Court bench in 2005. From 2009 through 2013 Judge Clarke presided over the Spokane Felony Drug Court. He has served as President of the Washington State Association of Drug Court Professionals from 2014-2015. Judge Clarke believes the foundation is an excellent avenue for the community to support the work of the Felony Therapeutic Courts in Spokane.
Anthony McBride, B.A., CDP was the Clinical Director of the Spokane County Adult Felony Behavioral Health Therapeutic Drug Court (TDC) for the last seven years. Mr. McBride was one of the co-developers of the Substance Abuse Formal Education (SAFE) program at Fairchild Air Force Base and received the Citizens Against Traffic Related Auto Accidents (CARTA) “Individual of the Year” award for outstanding contributions in reducing DUIs in Spokane county and on Fairchild Air Force Base. He continues to work with the regional judicial system and is called upon to be an expert witness by judicial officers and attorneys when the need arises. He earned his Bachelor of Arts in Psychology (Magna Cum Laude) from Eastern Washington State University and is a member of the Psi Chi National Honor Society in Psychology. Mr. McBride is currently enrolled in Capella University’s Masters level CACREP accredited Mental Health Counseling program working to obtain his mental health license. He adamantly believes in the TDC program and remains one of its strongest advocates in his field.
Julie graduated from the University of Washington and taught English Literature and Speech at Shoreline High School in Seattle. While raising three sons, Julie’s involvement in Spokane included serving as Director of Spokane Variety Club, 1980-85. Her responsibilities included fundraising, helping create a Telethon, and coordinating a prestigious volunteer team. She has served on the board of directors of Temple Beth Shalom and continues to be active in the Spokane Jewish community. Julie served on the National Board of Hadassah, which supports two major hospitals in Israel. She has been a National Vice-President and has made multiple trips to Israel including leading two recent interfaith missions. Currently Julie is Vice-President of Hadassah’s Foundation, which raises funds to empower women in Israel and provides leadership program funding for girls ages 13-30 in the United States. Julie’s interest in Drug Court began when her oldest son battled drug addiction. She became acutely aware of the many services offered in Spokane, as well as the talented involved professionals and multiple opportunities available to participants. She is pleased to serve on the Board.
Ashley Callan has served Spokane Superior Court since 2005 and was hired as Court Administrator in 2016. She earned her MPA (Public Administration) from Eastern Washington University in 2012, and has a BA in English Literature also from Eastern Washington University. Ms. Callan is has a long standing commitment to substance abuse treatment and therapeutic court issues.
The foundation’s specific purpose is to extend the availability of support services to the indigent participants of the Spokane County Behavioral Health Adult Felony Therapeutic Courts Programs, so that the greatest amount of recovery support services may be extended to the greatest number of persons served by these programs.
The Spokane Therapeutic Courts Foundation is 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization, all financial contributions are tax deductible. Tax deductible as allowable by law.
