Founding judge
SETH NORMAN
Judge Norman served as the Judge of Criminal Court Division IV in the 20th Judicial District from 1990-2018 and served as a Sr Drug Court Judge through June 30, 2019. He is the former Presiding Judge over DC4 and MCRRC programs.
Elected to the bench in 1990, Judge Norman was reelected without opposition in 1998, 2006 and again in 2014. He was a Korean War Veteran, having served 5 years in the U.S. Air Force. Judge Norman received his J.D. Degree from the Nashville School of Law in 1962. He practiced law in Nashville for 28 years in the law office of Jack Norman, Sr., and served as member of the General Assembly, the State Democratic Executive Committee and as a Delegate to the 1968 Democratic National Convention. Judge Norman is the Founder and former Presiding Judge of the Davidson County Drug Court, Morgan County Residential Recovery Court, and the Founder and former Chairman of the Nashville Drug Court Support Foundation, Inc.
Judge Norman worked with and assisted the National Judicial College, the Tennessee Bar Journal, the Nashville Bar Journal, and TADDAS in writing articles on substance abuse disorder treatment and criminal justice issues. Judge Norman and DC4 have been highlighted in various editions of the above listed publications as well as the 2004 President’s Drug Control Strategy, Newsweek Magazine, the Wall Street Journal, Tennessean, Nashville Scene, and other local periodicals.
Judge
Mike Pemberton
Judge Pemberton started his legal career as an Assistant District Attorney General in the Ninth (9th) Judicial District, where he served from 1984 to 1990. Thereafter, he went into private practice at Lewis, King, Krieg & Waldrop, P.C., now Lewis-Thomason, P.C., where he served in various capacities from associate attorney to Managing Partner. In 2003, he left to practice at what would become Pemberton & Scott, PLLP. There, Judge Pemberton practiced medical malpractice, medical products liability, mass torts, and claims under the National Vaccine Compensation Program. After thirty (30) years of practice, Judge Pemberton elected to run for Circuit Court Judge in the Ninth (9th) Judicial District in 2014. While serving as Circuit Court Judge, Judge Pemberton became aware of the existence of the Morgan County Residential Recovery Court (Recovery Court), a state-wide recovery court with residents from Mountain City to Memphis, which, ironically, is located within the Ninth (9th) Judicial District and run at that time by Judge Seth Walker Norman, the “father” of the state’s recovery court system. After Judge Norman’s retirement, Judge Don Elledge assumed the position of Judge of the Recovery Court until his retirement in 2021. Thereafter, Judge Pemberton has had the pleasure of serving as Judge of the Recovery Court since Judge Elledge’s retirement.
During the first years of his service to the Recovery Court, Judge Pemberton worked alongside Judge Norman, who continued to serve as a consultant with the Court. Judge Pemberton has said that working alongside Judge Norman for approximately three (3) years was “an extraordinary opportunity” and that his goal is to build on Judge Norman’s legacy, together with the very capable staff at Recovery Court.
COURt Director
ELIZABETH LAMAR ANDREWS
Elizabeth Lamar Andrews, is a Tennessee state Licensed Alcohol and Drug Abuse Counselor. Elizabeth has twenty years of experience as an addiction counselor. She has worked in all levels of care from outpatient to inpatient and long-term residential care. She has trained others in addiction competencies, as well as trained adult learners and volunteers for specific job skills.
Education
MARYVILLE COLLEGE
B.A., Psychology
case MANAGEr
CHELSEA SMITH
Chelsea Smith is a case manager with Morgan County Residential Recovery Court. She has an associate’s degree in Criminal Justice and worked at the Roane County Sheriff’s Office for 5 years rising to the rank of Sergeant prior to coming to work at MCRRC.
Education
ITT TECH
A.S., Criminal Justice
psychiatrist
RENU BHATEJA, MD
Renu Bhateja, MD is a trained adult and child Psychiatrist. She attended medical school at Punjab University in India and later completed a residency in Adult Psychiatry at the University of Connecticut Medical School, Farmington, CT which was followed by a Fellowship in Child and Adult Psychiatry at the Institute of Living, Hartford, CT. She is certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. Dr. Bhateja has extensive experience in providing services to numerous hospitals, clinics, mental health agencies, nursing homes, and schools. She is currently CMO of Ridgeview Behavioral Services in Oak Ridge, TN and on the medical staff at Methodist Medical Clinic part of Covenant Health. Dr. Bhateja is a member of the American Medical Association, American Psychiatric Association and the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.
Specialties
Anxiety Dissociative and Somatoform Disorders
Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)
Autism
Bipolar Disorder
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Psychiatric Therapeutic Procedures
Education
PUNJAB UNIVERSITY, INDIA
PsychiatryUNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT MEDICAL SCHOOL
Residency in Adult Psychiatry.INSTITUTE FOR THE LIVING
Fellowship, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry