May 28, 2013 Speaker: Sheriff William Gore – San Diego County Sheriff’s Deparment

Sheriff William D. GoreWilliam D. Gore was appointed as the 29th Sheriff of San Diego County on July 3, 2009, and elected a year later in June 2010. Sheriff Gore oversees one of the largest Sheriff’s Departments in the nation: with 4,000 employees, an annual budget of over $600 million, and a service area of over 4,200 square miles extending to a 60 mile international border. Along with patrol and investigative operations, his department provides air support, search and rescue service, and forensic support for the San Diego region. His department operates seven detention facilities countywide.

Sheriff Gore is well known for his regional approach to law enforcement and for his energetic deployment of technology to the front lines of enforcement. He spearheaded the creation of the Regional Terrorism Threat Assessment Center (RTTAC) and a Rapid Response DNA Team that uses forensic DNA to solve property crimes. He created a Border Crimes Initiative, including Operation Stonegarden, recognized nationally for its effectiveness in addressing border crime. A champion of Intelligence-Led Policing, he has increased the department’s reliance on the work of its Crime Analysis Team to strengthen the Department’s crime prevention efforts and assist in the swift apprehension of criminals when prevention fails.

Sheriff Gore’s law enforcement career spans over 40 years. He spent 32 years in the FBI, where he rose to the level of Assistant Director. He served as Special Agent in Charge (SAC) of the Seattle and San Diego Field Divisions, where he implemented the FBI Cyber Crime Squad and Joint Terrorism Task Force. He played a significant role in establishing the San Diego Regional Computer Forensics Laboratory, the first of its kind in the United States. After retiring from the FBI, Sheriff Gore served as Special Advisor and Chief Investigator to the San Diego County District Attorney. In 2004, he was appointed by Sheriff Bill Kolender to serve as Assistant Sheriff over the Law Enforcement Services Bureau and then as Undersheriff, where he was responsible for the day-to-day operations of the Department.

Sheriff Gore is a member of the San Diego County Police Chiefs’ and Sheriff’s Association, board member of the San Diego Crime Victims Fund, past board member of the California Peace Officers’ Association (CPOA), and a member of the San Diego Rotary Club. He has been the recipient of numerous awards and commendations including the Arthur E. Hughes Career Achievement Award from his alma mater, University of San Diego (2002). He was selected as “Headliner of the Year” by the San Diego Press Club (2001). President Clinton designated him as a Meritorious Executive in Senior Executive Service (2000).

Sheriff Gore, a San Diego native, holds a Master’s degree in Public Administration from Seattle University and a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of San Diego.

Sheriff Gore’s family is rich in law enforcement experience. His father and older brother were a part of the San Diego Police Department and his middle brother was a San Diego County Deputy Sheriff. His wife was one of the first female FBI agents in the United States.

Sheriff Gore and his wife, Natalie, have a grown son who lives in Arizona.

May 14, 2013 Speaker: Dr. Larry Parsons speaking on drug addiction research at the Scripps Research Institute

Dr. Larry Parsons

Larry Parsons, Ph.D.

Associate Professor
Committee On The Neurobiology Of Addictive Disorders
California Campus
Laboratory Website
lparsons@scripps.edu
(858) 784-7413

Scripps Research Joint Appointments

Faculty, Kellogg School of Science and Technology

Research Focus

Our research is focused on the neurochemical mechanisms contributing to drug reward, dependence and relapse with a goal of identifying novel pharmacotherapeutic targets for addiction. Current projects seek to characterize alterations in motivation, affective state and cognitive function resulting from long-term drug exposure with a particular focus on dependence-related disruptions in the function and influence of the endogenous cannabinoid system.

Education

Ph.D., Emory University, 1992

Professional Experience

1988                B.A. in Chemistry, Whitman College
1992                Ph.D. in Chemistry, Emory University
1992 – 1995    Postdoctoral Fellowship, Department of Neuropharmacology, The Scripps Research Institute
1995 – 1998    Senior Research Associate, Department of Neuropharmacology, The Scripps Research Institute
1998 – 2003    Assistant Professor, Department of Neuropharmacology, The Scripps Research Institute
2003 – 2009    Associate Professor, Committee on the Neurobiology of Addictive Behavior, The Scripps Research Institute
2010 –             Associate Professor with Tenure, Committee on the Neurobiology of Addictive Behavior, The Scripps Research Institute

Awards & Professional Activities

1992    Charles T. Lester Award for excellence in chemistry research
1994    IUPHAR Young Investigator Award
1996   American College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ACNP) Young Investigator Award
2006   Editorial board member, Alcohol
2005   Membership on the NIH-CSR Neurotoxicology and Alcohol panel
2008   Elected to full membership of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ACNP)
2008   Keynote Lecture, Neuropsychopharmacology Symposium, Vrije University, Amsterdam
2009   Plenary Lecture, annual meeting of the International Cannabinoid Research Society
2011   Editorial board member, Neuropharmacology

Selected References

Frantz, K.J., Hansson, K.J., Stouffer, D.G., Parsons, L.H. 5-HT6 receptor antagonism potentiates the behavioral and neurochemical effects of amphetamine but not cocaine. Neuropharmacology 42:170-180, 2002.

Parsons, L.H., Kerr, T.M., Tecott, L.H. 5-HT1A receptor mutant mice exhibit enhanced tonic, stress-induced and fluoxetine-induced serotonergic neurotransmission. J. Neurochem. 77:607-617, 2001.

Parsons, L.H., Weiss, F. Koob, G.F. Serotonin1B receptor stimulation enhances cocaine reinforcement. J. Neurosci. 18:10078-10089, 1998.

Giuffrida, A., Parsons, L.H., Kerr, T.M., Rodriguez de Fonseca, F., Navarro, M., Piomelli D. Dopamine activation of endogenous cannabinoid signalling in dorsal striatum. Nature Neurosci. 2:358-363, 1999.

Links

Team Reveals Major Role for Novel Neurotransmitter System in Regulating Drug Intake

 

April 23, 2013 Speaker: Catherine Johnson, CTT, speaks about early detection and prevention of breast cancer.

Catherine JohnsonCatherine Johnson, CTT of Silk Thermal Imaging was in the biotech/pharmaceutical industry for over 18 years. She worked as a Freelance Medical Writer for 10 of those years in the field of pre-clinical research for the largest pharmaceutical company in the world. In June of 2009 she ended her tenure to get involved in thermal imaging because she believes that this little known life-saving technology needs to be brought to the forefront of diagnostic options. This technology can save lives and spare women the devastating emotional, physical and financial ruin that comes with a breast cancer diagnosis.

Thermal images are interpreted and read by licensed physicians who are Board Certified Clinical Thermologists (BCCT) specially trained in thermal imaging interpretation. Silk Thermal Imaging utilizes the services of several BCCTs to ensure timely return of results.