Transform Westside Summit – August 4, 2017
Featured Presentation: The English Avenue Drug Market Intervention (DMI) –
An Ongoing Police/Community Partnership
Presented by: Assistant U.S. Attorney Laurel Boatright
About Laurel Boatright: Laurel Boatright is an Assistant United States Attorney for the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Northern District of Georgia. She currently serves as the Community Outreach Coordinator for the USAO. She graduated from Rice University in Houston, Texas, with a B.A. in English and History and received her law degree from the University of Texas School of Law. After practicing as a commercial litigator in Houston, this Texas native moved to Atlanta in 2010 to realize her lifelong dream of becoming a federal criminal prosecutor. During her time as an AUSA, she has primarily investigated and prosecuted rogue medical professionals and “pill mills” that illegally dispense prescription painkillers, as well as Mexico-based drug trafficking organizations distributing heroin, cocaine, and methamphetamine in the metro Atlanta region.
Since 2014, Laurel has spearheaded the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Drug Market Intervention (DMI) in the English Avenue neighborhood of West Atlanta (colloquially known as “The Bluff”). The English Avenue DMI is an innovative crime reduction strategy in which state, local, and federal law enforcement have partnered with residents, civic associations, clergy, ex-offenders, and social services providers to disrupt street-level drug dealing in the largest open-air heroin market in the American Southeast.
The Transform Westside Summit is held on the 1st and 3rd Friday of each month and is free and open to the public. Meetings begin promptly at 7:15 a.m. with complimentary breakfast, provided by Summit sponsor Chick-fil-A, and morning devotion.*
*Many in our community are driven by their spiritual faith to participate in the Westside revitalization effort. The time at the beginning of our meetings is an opportunity to share various inspirational reflections. While the speakers may articulate their personal faith, it is meant to be inclusive, inspiring and meaningful. All are welcome.