Avertest – The Metropolitan General Sessions Court of Nashville-Davidson County

To the Custodian of Records:

Under the Tennessee Open Records Act, §10-7-503 et seq., I am requesting an opportunity to obtain, via email, copies of public records pertaining to the procurement and General Sessions Court drug testing contractor Avertest (also known as Averhealth, and Global Drug Testing Services).

I am requesting access to the following documents from between 1/1/2012 and 8/1/2013:

Communications and emails (including attachments) from Avertest executive Jason Herzog to court and probation/parole representatives
Communications and emails (including attachments) from any Avertest employee marketing or describing the company’s services
Transcripts and records of internal meetings between court and probation staff evaluating Avertest’s services
Communications and emails (including attachments) between court and probation staff discussing Avertest’s services (cost, quality, frequency of testing, and cut-off levels)
Communications and emails (including attachments) between court and probation staff discussing or debating what cut-off levels to use for Avertest testing
Communications and emails (including attachments) from Probation Director Robert Green discussing Avertest

I would also like to request a waiver of all fees as the disclosure of the requested information is in the public interest and will contribute significantly to the public’s understanding of the drug testing and drug testing reliability. I am a journalist and this report is focused on understanding the best practices for drug testing, and this report will help to inform the public on these practices.

In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.

Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request.

Sincerely,

Kent Hoover, a citizen of Tennessee, in coordination with Alice Hines.