We were honored to welcome two distinguished guests to our September breakfast meeting: Judge Ana L. Escobar and Judge Melissa Blackburn, both General Sessions Judges for Metropolitan Nashville and Davidson County, who joined us to share the powerful work happening in our community’s treatment courts.
Judge Escobar opened the program with an overview of Davidson County’s treatment courts — seven in total, addressing needs ranging from substance abuse and mental health to human trafficking and juvenile diversion. She focused her remarks on human trafficking, explaining that the term is an umbrella covering labor trafficking, sex trafficking, forced marriage, and other specialized forms of exploitation. Judge Escobar was direct in dispelling common myths: traffickers are rarely strangers, but are most often family members or close acquaintances; men and boys make up an estimated half of trafficking victims, though Nashville currently lacks dedicated resources for them; and trafficking rarely involves physical restraint, relying instead on psychological manipulation, isolation, and manufactured debt. “If you see something, say something,” she urged, while cautioning members never to approach a suspected victim directly, but instead to contact the Metro Police Department or the national trafficking hotline.
Judge Escobar described her work with a specialized court supporting survivors of trafficking, a voluntary program that can take up to 24 months and pairs participants with a full team, including a therapist, recovery specialist, case manager, and public defender. She encouraged members to support the nonprofits that make this possible, singling out Thistle Farms and Room In The Inn’s Cora program, and invited everyone to visit the Thistle Farms Cafe, which employs survivors in the program.
Judge Blackburn then shared updates from the mental health and veterans courts, which celebrate their 25th anniversary this October, before introducing a new initiative: Davidson County’s Competency Court. She traced its origin to a 2021 case in which a man found incompetent to stand trial after a violent attack at a Nashville hospital was released, only to reoffend weeks later. In response, Judge Blackburn and a coalition of local agencies built a program to provide evaluation, training, and supported housing for individuals found incompetent, an effort that has since grown alongside a change in state law requiring individuals charged with felonies to be evaluated immediately. “We’re trying to make certain you all are safe,” Judge Blackburn said of the program’s mission.
During the Q&A, the judges shared that specialty courts see roughly an 85 percent success rate in participants avoiding re-offense, at a fraction of the cost of incarceration. On the subject of protecting children from online exploitation, Judge Escobar pointed members to Hope for Justice’s free parent webinar on recognizing warning signs of grooming, and encouraged CBL members interested in mentoring or supporting the courts’ nonprofit partners to reach out. Both judges pointed members to several resources, including AncoraTN (aftercare services for human trafficking survivors), Centerstone (mental health and addiction treatment), Nashville Anti-Human Trafficking Coalition, Operation Stand Down Tennessee (comprehensive wraparound services for veterans), Park Center (mental health and housing services), and Thistle Farms (store offering employment opportunities, healing and hope for women survivors of trafficking, prostitution, and addiction).
We also welcomed our newest class of Leadership Catholic at this morning’s meeting — led by program director Dwayne Keller (fourth from right) — to celebrate the members of LC9 (from left to right): Daniel Hayes, Matt Gentzkow, Adam Heston, Justin Guidry, Silas Mahner, Ben O’Neill, Anna Grosser, Juan Jose Rodriguez, Mary Martin, Nathan Wilcox, Fred Fernandez, and Quaid Akins (not pictured).
Finally, we would like to remind our members of three wonderful events coming up in the coming weeks:
- Wednesday, September 30 (6:00pm) – 11th Annual ACE Dinner, presented by the Diocese of Nashville in partnership with the Nashville Catholic Business Women’s League: Come celebrate and support Catholic education in the Diocese of Nashville! Please visit DioceseofNashville.com/ACE to purchase tickets, become a sponsor, or make a donation.
- Friday, October 23 (12:10pm) – Red Mass for Legal Professionals, celebrated by Bishop J. Mark Spalding at the Cathedral of the Incarnation. Click here for more information.
- Cursillo is a weekend retreat to encounter Christ at Camp Marymount. Visit NashvilleCursillo.com to register. Upcoming weekends are as follows:
- Men’s – October 1-4, 2026; February 4-7, 2027; September 9-12, 2027
- Women’s – March 4-7, 2027; October 7-10, 2027
We thank Judges Escobar and Blackburn for generously sharing their time and for the vital, often unseen work they do — truly serving as the hands and feet of Jesus for the most vulnerable members of our community. We look forward to seeing you all at our next meeting on October 8!
