ATLANTA - Of the 11 people appointed to Governor Nathan Deal's Georgia Commission on Medical Cannabis, four are from the north Georgia area.
The panel was created by the passage of House Bill 1 this session, which allows people with certain medical conditions to legally possess cannabis oil in-state with their doctors' approval.
Among those on the panel are Sen. Butch Miller of Gainesville and Sen. Renee Unterman of Buford. Brian Rickman of Tiger, the District Attorney for the Mountain Judicial District, will serve, as will Mandy Reece of Gainesville with the Georgia Campus of Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine. (See biographies of all panel members below.)
The commission must submit a report by the end of the year on what additional types of medical marijuana use should be permitted in the state.
The Governor's Office announced the appointments Friday.
Members of the Georgia Commission on Medical Cannabis are:
Yong D. Park
Park is a professor in the Department of Neurology and Pediatrics and is the chief of the Child Neurology section at Georgia Regents University. He is the medical director of the Georgia Regents University Pediatric Epilepsy Program. Park is American board-certified in Neurology, Child Neurology, Clinical Neurophysiology, Pediatrics and Sleep Medicine. He earned a bachelor’s degree and a medical degree from Yonsei University in Seoul, South Korea. He and his wife, Hae, have two children and two grandchildren. They reside in Martinez.
Mark Murphy
Murphy is a senior partner with the Center for Digestive and Liver Health and is an assistant professor of Internal Medicine at the Savannah campus of Mercer University School of Medicine. He is board-certified in both Internal Medicine and Gastroenterology. Murphy is a fellow of the American College of Physicians and the American College of Gastroenterology and is a former president of the Georgia Medical Society. He served on the Medical Advisory Board for the Georgia Chapter of the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America and is a member of the board of directors of Memorial Health University Medical System. Murphy earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Georgia and a medical degree from the Medical College of Georgia. He and his wife, Daphne, have two children. They reside in Savannah.
Cynthia Wetmore
Wetmore is the director of the Center for Clinical and Translational Research for the Department of Pediatrics at Emory University School of Medicine and Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. She is also the director of Developmental Therapeutics for the Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta and is the co-director of the Pediatric Program of the Atlanta Clinical and Translational Science Institute. Wetmore is board-certified in Pediatrics and Pediatric Hematology and Oncology. She earned a bachelor’s degree in History and Philosophy of Science from Harvard University, a medical degree from the University of Minnesota Medical School and a doctorate in Neurobiology from the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden. Wetmore has one son and resides in Atlanta.
Allen Peake
Peake represents the 141st District of the Georgia House of Representatives, which includes parts of Monroe and Bibb counties. He previously served as the House Majority Caucus Secretary/Treasurer. Peake owns 21 restaurants around Georgia, including the Cheddars and Captain D’s franchises. He earned a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Mercer University. Peake and his wife, Betsy, have three children and three grandchildren. They reside in Macon.
Gary Gulledge
Gulledge is currently serving his second term as the sheriff of Paulding County. He is the vice president for Region 2 of the Georgia Sheriffs’ Association and is a member of the association’s board of directors and legislative committee. Gulledge also is a member of the advisory board of the Northwest Georgia Law Enforcement Training Center. He and his wife, Susie, have one child. They reside in Powder Springs.
Renee Unterman
Unterman represents the 45th District of the Georgia Senate, which encompasses northeastern Gwinnett County. She is the chairman of the Health and Human Services Committee, vice chairman of the Appropriations Committee and sits on the Assignments and Administrative Affairs Committee. Unterman previously served as the mayor of Loganville and as a Gwinnett County commissioner. She earned a bachelor’s degree in Social Work from the University of Georgia and a degree in Nursing from Georgia State University. She and her husband, Phil, have two daughters. They reside in Buford.
Butch Miller
Miller is a business owner and represents the 49th District of the Georgia Senate, which includes Hall and Jackson counties. He serves on the Appropriations, Banking and Finance Institutions, Ethics, Regulated Industries and Rules committees. Miller is a floor leader for Gov. Nathan Deal. He earned a bachelor’s degree from North Georgia College and State University. Miller and his wife, Teresa, have three sons, Carey, Charlie and the late Coleman Miller. They reside in Gainesville.
Sara (Mandy) Wilson Reece
Reece is an assistant professor and vice chair of the Department of Pharmacy Practice with the Georgia Campus of Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine. She is an active member of the American Association of Diabetes Educators, American College of Clinical Pharmacy, Georgia Pharmacy Association and American Pharmacists Association. Reece earned a doctor of Pharmacy degree from Mercer University Southern School of Pharmacy. She and her husband, Stacey, have two children. They reside in Gainesville.
Brian Rickman
Rickman is a district attorney for the Mountain Judicial Circuit. He serves on the Georgia Board of Public Safety and the Prosecuting Attorneys' Council of Georgia. Rickman has previously taught as an adjunct professor and currently serves on the board of trustees at Piedmont College. He was recognized by the Fulton Daily Report in 2013 as one of Georgia’s 40 Rising Legal Stars under 40. Rickman and his wife, Maggie, have two children. They reside in Tiger.
Katie M. Dempsey
Dempsey represents the 13th District of the Georgia House of Representatives. She is the chairman of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Human Resources. Dempsey is a member of First Lady Sandra Deal’s Children’s Cabinet, the Governor’s Office for Children and Families’ Advisory Board and the Behavioral Health Coordinating Council. She earned a bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood Education from the University of Georgia. Dempsey and her husband, Lynn, have two children and seven grandchildren. They reside in Rome.
Stacey Cotton
Cotton currently serves as the police chief for the City of Covington. He is the past president of the Georgia Association of Chiefs of Police and is the current president of A Child’s Voice Child Advocacy Center in Social Circle. Cotton is also a member of the 2006 class of Leadership Georgia. He earned a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice from Mercer University and dual master’s degree in both Public Administration and Criminal Justice from Troy University. Cotton and his wife, Lana Lane, have three children. They reside in Covington.
