Iryna’s Law

Irynaslaw.com 

With the implementation of Iryna’s Law, county officials—including sheriffs and county managers—have been seeking options to monitor defendants awaiting trial without funding yet another costly program. Having been involved in creating offender-pay models and their hybrid versions over the years, we are pleased to introduce our company.

Our management team brings over 100 years of combined service to the justice system. Our staff consist of former and retired corrections and law enforcement personnel.

We have worked with the North Carolina General Assembly on Laura’s Law and the North Carolina Electronic Monitoring Law. 

We have testified in committees and helped craft legislation and policies to enhance public safety while giving judges options—options to assist victims while cost-effectively stemming the flow of overcrowding.

Whether you need a full-service case management program, a hybrid partnership or pilot, or an outright offender-pay “no county responsibility” model, we are here to assist you.

Please feel free to let us know how we can help.

800.464.5917

“Cited with recognition for services to courts and treatment centers, in 2018, CAM was recognized as offering products that revolutionized the way courts, agencies, and treatment providers monitor alcohol-involved offenders.”

About Iryna’s Law

Iryna’s Law is a new law in North Carolina that took effect on December 1, 2025. It was named after Iryna Zarutska, a 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee who was tragically killed on a light rail train in Charlotte. The law aims to enhance public safety and address issues related to pretrial release and mental health.

Joshua Cartret Appointed President of Tarheel Aviation & Investments, LLC (TAV)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

Joshua Cartret Appointed President of Tarheel Aviation & Investments, LLC (TAV)

North Carolina, May 21, 2025 — Tarheel Aviation & Investments, LLC (TAV), a privately-held aviation and investment company based in North Carolina, is pleased to announce the appointment of Joshua Cartret as its new President.

Founded in 2004, TAV initially established itself in aircraft leasing, providing instrument-rated pilots to training centers and leasing late model or new aircraft to flight schools across the region.  “Our planes offered the latest Garmin flat screens in the Myrtle Beach area at a time when most panels had outdated 60’s instruments.” 

TAV later partnered with Angel Flight and ultimately became a real estate holding company. 

The company expanded its operations in June 2006 through strategic acquisitions, strengthening its position within a wide array of businesses. 

As a parent company it formed TAV SRL in Europe in 2016. 

“TAV partners have involved far more than those seated in planes” its founder once stated. 

Since 2008, TAV has been guided by Annamaria Cartret, who has served as chief operations officer and later CEO and who will continue to play a vital role as Board Chairman, overseeing the company's marine services division. Under her leadership, TAV has diversified its portfolio and laid the groundwork for future growth in other areas including global ventures. 

With the SHIPS for America Act, TAV is charting a new course toward a potential public offering, aiming to capitalize on emerging market opportunities and expand its influence within several industries. 

“Josh brings a fresh vision and dynamic leadership that will propel TAV into a new era of growth and profitability,” said Annamaria. “His expertise and innovative approach will be instrumental as we navigate an ever-changing business landscape.”

Josh has a law enforcement background. He has worked as both a supervisor and as a detective. Since 2017 he has worked as a CTO for an IT company in the government services field taking a short leave for public service. 

Joshua Cartret, who will assume the role of President, expressed enthusiasm about the company's future: “I am honored to lead TAV into this exciting new chapter. We are committed to expanding our reach, improving operational efficiency, and delivering value to our stakeholders. 

Together, we will continue to build on the legacy established by my dad.”

TAV’s founder, Mark Cartret, has been recognized in numerous publications, including the Wall Street Journal, for his contributions to the business community.  

A venture capitalist and former gubernatorial appointee, he bought his first plane from Christianson Aviation in the early 90s. 

From aviation to real estate, insurance and government services, the list of companies Mark has founded, sold or owned is exhaustive. 

About Tarheel Aviation & Investments, LLC (TAV):

Founded in 2004, TAV initially specialized in aircraft leasing, pilot placement, and investment opportunities within the aviation sector. Airline pilots on furlough or new pilots needing to build flight time often signed on. 

The company focus would change in 2014 as TAV became a managing company to several other entities. “The company literally flew to where the profits landed. 

And often the market was nowhere near aviation,” its founder stated in early 2015. 

With a history of strategic growth and innovation, TAV remains committed to delivering high-quality services and exploring new avenues for expansion.

Media Contact:

Col. W. Cohen 

Director of Communications

Tarheel Aviation & Investments, LLC

Email: colwilliam.cohen@tavinvestus.com

Phone: (888)317-2245

End of Release

Another Soldier Has Fallen…

As I passed by the cemetery today, I saw yet another soldier being planted. 

Another victim of the war machine? 

We were warned of Soviet aggression, yet how many wars has Russia caused since the fall of the Iron Curtain?

And as I paused for a moment of reflection, I penned a commentary on the endless wars that have plagued our world. Most, if not all, involved American soldiers—sons, daughters, mothers, fathers and grandfathers. 

The graveyard looked empty on this hot August morning. 

I saw no one but soldiers burying one of their comrades, stoic, no one around to shed a tear. No one to tell me the story of this hero’s death. 

I am here. 

I am here to share the untold stories, the hidden truths, and the consequences that ripple through generations. 

In the annals of time, wars have been fought, blood spilled, and lives shattered. From the ancient battlefields to the modern theaters of conflict, the echoes of war reverberate through history. But amidst the chaos and destruction, we must pause and ask ourselves, what have we truly gained?

Wars are born from a multitude of reasons—ideological differences, territorial disputes, greed for power, or the quest for resources. They ignite with fervor, fueled by the drumbeats of propaganda and the cries for justice. But as the dust settles and the smoke clears, we are left with the bitter truth that wars often beget more wars.

Endless wars, like an insidious cycle, consume the lives of the young and the innocent. They drain the spirit of nations and breed a culture of violence. Families torn apart, homes reduced to rubble, and dreams shattered in an unforgiving tide of conflict. And for what? In the pursuit of peace, how many more lives shall we sacrifice?

It is said that war is a necessary evil, a means to an end. But let us not forget the scars that are etched upon the souls of those who have witnessed its horrors. The veterans, haunted by the memories of comrades lost, bear the weight of their sacrifice long after the battles have subsided.

Yet, amidst the darkness, there are glimmers of hope. The yearning for peace, the tireless efforts of diplomats, and the resilience of communities striving to rebuild. It is in these moments that we find the strength to rise above the ashes of conflict and seek a brighter future.

Let us remember that the true cost of war extends far beyond the battlefields. It infiltrates our collective consciousness, shaping our worldview and perpetuating a cycle of violence. We must strive for dialogue, understanding, and empathy as we navigate the complex tapestry of human existence.

In the words of Paul Harvey, "In times like these, it is easy to forget that there have always been times like these." But let us not forget the lessons of the past. Let us forge a path towards peace, where diplomacy triumphs over aggression, and the echoes of war are replaced with the harmony of understanding.

For in the end, it is not the endless wars that define us, but our capacity to rise above them—to embrace our shared humanity and create a world where the pursuit of peace is paramount. May we find the courage to break the chains of history, and in doing so, ensure that future generations shall never be burdened with the weight of endless wars. And that, my friends, is the rest of the story.

If—by Rudyard Kipling

 If

By Rudyard Kipling 

If you can keep your head when all about you

Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;

If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,

But make allowance for their doubting too:

If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,

Or, being lied about, don't deal in lies,

Or being hated don't give way to hating,

And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise;

If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;

If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim,

If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster

And treat those two impostors just the same:.

If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken

Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,

Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,

And stoop and build'em up with worn-out tools;

If you can make one heap of all your winnings

And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,

And lose, and start again at your beginnings,

And never breathe a word about your loss:

If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew

To serve your turn long after they are gone,

And so hold on when there is nothing in you

Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on!"

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,

Or walk with Kings - nor lose the common touch,

If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,

If all men count with you, but none too much:

If you can fill the unforgiving minute

With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,

Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,

And - which is more - you'll be a Man, my son!

A Walk Through the Park…

A Walk Through the Park

By Mark Cartret

As Isabella walks into the diner, she sees Mike, her son staring at a coffee cup on the table. It was the table she had met his father at, the table she had learned she was pregnant with her first child while she was 24. At that very same table she had learned of her mom’s stage 4 melanoma, her dad’s passing and she was given the keys to her first car…at that very same table. In fact her high school sweetheart, Mike’s dad had carved “J❤️Izzy” into the wooden top. And it was still there. 

At 24 Mike had joined NYPD, graduating at the top of his class at the academy. 

Hi mom, I love you he said as she walked up. Hum. What’s up the mom thought? 

Usually you love me when we say goodbye…or there is bad news. 

Let’s make today our day Mike said. As Mike stood up to hug his mom, she knew exactly where he wanted to go. Off they headed to Central Park. 

While they began to enter the park Mike, as always wanted to hear about his father. It was in this very park a young Isabella had met John 26 years ago. A handsome New York firefighter who, like Mike had joined the NYPD after rising to the top of the police academy. Along with the many good memories, there was one bad, horrific thought that always overshadowed everything else. 

John had also met his fate in this very same park.

It was 11 pm on a Friday. Isabella recalled it as if it was yesterday. 

John was a young sergeant on his way home nearing the end of his shift which he had gladly overstayed. 

And he was the closest officer to a common law robbery that was in progress. The caller had said three males in red hoodies are holding a couple at gunpoint. John would have known the likelihood that the three reds meant gang. And as a supervisor he was not required to handle the call. Yet that was John. 

His first mistake was not the misidentified gang. He should have waited on backup to arrive. Perhaps he had gotten complacent in his job. Or maybe he was so concerned for the victims that he was careless. 

Whatever the case, the couple would later tell the story of the brave officer who appeared as a knight in the dark who came to their rescue, allowing them to run to safety while he stood in between them and certain death. Several backup units would find a 10-42. John had managed to take out two of the assailants while the other’s bullet found its mark. John was not wearing his vest. 

Within minutes of the officer down call, it seemed as if hundreds of units would respond. And respond they did. Central Park was ablaze with as much red as blue. John was loved by all, the community, his fellow law enforcement brothers, and his former firefighters. 

Anyway as mother and son strolled through the park, mom became much more aware of Mike’s nostalgia. It seemed as if he was going away. He literally asked for his life’s story. And it was easy for a doting mom to recall. Mike was her favorite. He was actually her only child. You are not considering going to the Middle East again son she asked?  Oh no mom I am just so happy to see you and to reflect. 

After going through the pregnancy test story, the ultrasound tale proving it was a boy, the stories of the cheap cigars that John had bought and nearly ever other aspect of her kid’s life, Mike wanted to stroll down the street. Hand in hand they walked for the better part of the day. Mike would occasionally say hi to an acquaintance, Lisa or Tom, Gordon, and Jamie. Everyone seemed so happy and so focused. It was a beautiful day but as evening neared, Isabella began to sense a pulling away. She actually felt a strong emotion of sadness come over. Mike I’m guessing you have to go in tonight she said. Are you sure you are not thinking about enlisting again? That’s when…

Isabella is awakened by a large wrap on her car window. 

She finds she had fallen asleep in the cemetery, her son’s flower arrangement in her lap. Startled. Confused. Sad. 

She lowers her window to hear Sgt. O’Malley ask if she was ok. 

This was all a dream!

Puzzled and crying she was speechless and clueless as she ran over to her son’s resting place. 

Strangely she looked at the neighboring stones of other fallen officers, the names read:

 “Lisa, Tom, Gordon and Jamie.”

SCRAM CAM® Continuous Alcohol Monitoring

 

SCRAM CAM Provides Accountability and Encourages Compliance

Like a breathalyzer for the ankle, the SCRAM Continuous Alcohol Monitoring (SCRAM CAM) bracelet provides 24/7 transdermal alcohol testing for hardcore drunk drivers, high-risk alcohol and domestic violence offenders. By automatically sampling the wearer’s perspiration every 30 minutes, the SCRAM CAM bracelet eliminates testing gaps and encourages accountability. SCRAM CAM not only supports sobriety but also results in higher compliance rates with court orders and increases community safety.

Continuous alcohol monitoring is proven to support long-term behavior change and complements treatment for alcohol dependence or addiction. In fact, SCRAM CAM helps more people achieve more Sober Days—a 24-hour period in which a monitored client has no confirmed consumption of alcohol and no confirmed attempt to tamper or circumvent testing.

Ready to see SCRAM CAM in action? Schedule a demo today!

Call 800-464-5917 or visit us at www.continuousalcoholmonitoring.com. 

Alcohol and Crime

 Alcohol and Crime

Four studies, conducted at Texas Christian University on over 70,000 patients between 1969 and 1995 affirm that sobriety term length is a reliable predictor of long-term sobriety success. The longer sobriety is maintained, the better the results. At 3 to 6 months of sobriety, executive cognitive function begins to recover.

The purpose of drug, DUI, and other specialty courts is to work to change the behaviors that are causing the repeat offenses—the addiction.

DUI, domestic violence, and other alcohol-involved offenders are high-risk to the community and, because their criminal behavior is driven by the alcohol misuse, the recidivism rates are exceptionally high. They clog the court dockets, community corrections caseloads, and prisons and jails, and they are stuck in the revolving door of the criminal justice system.

Statistics

Two-thirds of victims of violence by an intimate report the offender was drunk at the time of the offense.

In 75% of spousal abuse cases, the assailant was drunk at the time of the offense. That’s 750,000 of the 1 million reported domestic violence offenses each year. 

Crimes other than DUI that are attributable to alcohol cost the U.S. $84 billion a year, more than 2 times the $38 billion attributable to drugs.

Alcohol is the number one drug of abuse in our criminal justice system.

40% of violent victimizations involve an offender who is intoxicated. 

Studies show that repeat DUI offenders generally have an alcohol abuse or addiction problem, so conventional punishment and sanctions do little to address the core problem.

Drunk driving is the foremost substance abuse crime in the U.S.

While the fatality rate for alcohol-involved traffic accidents has steadily declined over the last few

years, the rate/% of DWI arrests that are repeat offenses has remained relatively unchanged.

Statistics

Over 10,000 people are killed in alcohol-related traffic fatalities each year. 

Alcohol-related fatalities account for 31% of total traffic fatalities. 

1.2 million people are arrested for impaired driving each year (drugs and alcohol combined). 

Alcohol-related driving costs the U.S. $37 billion each and every year.

People on average drive drunk 80 times before their first arrest.

Nearly 75% of drivers convicted of driving while impaired are either frequent heavy drinkers (alcohol abusers) or alcoholics; 98% have histories of alcohol abuse.

The median BAC level for DWI arrests is twice the legal limit, 0.016 BAC. 

One-third of all DUI offenders on probation and 2/3 of those incarcerated for DUI are there for

repeat offenses.

DUI offenders represent 15% of the probation population, second only to drug offenses. 

Other Alcohol-Involved Crimes

Statistics

36% of convicted offenders had been drinking alcohol when they committed their conviction offense. 

40% of state prisoners convicted of violent crimes were under the influence of alcohol at the time of their offense. The more violent the crime, the greater the likelihood that alcohol was involved.

In 75% of cases of domestic violence, the spouse reported the offender had been drinking. 

2/3 of victims who suffered violence by an intimate reported that alcohol had been a factor. 

Prison/Jail Overcrowding

Alcohol offenders represent a disproportionate percentage of the corrections system. 

Pretrial offenders awaiting adjudication occupy a substantial amount of the space in city and county jails.

Agencies nationwide have turned to electronic monitoring options in lieu of incarceration in order to mitigate the costs and overcrowding associated with housing inmates. 

Statistics

In 2008, one in every 100 adults in the U.S. was in jail or prison, enormously impacting state budgets without delivering a clear return on public safety. 

40% of state prisoners convicted of violent crimes were under the influence of alcohol at the time of their offense. The more violent the crime, the greater the likelihood that alcohol was involved.

Continuous Alcohol Monitoring

With drugs, residual indicators remain in the body long enough that random, periodic testing can cost-effectively identify drug violations. But alcohol metabolizes very quickly, so random testing makes it virtually impossible to catch someone who is drinking and violating the conditions of their supervision.

Testing every 30 minutes closes that testing gap. Testing automatically, no matter where the client is, and without requiring his participation, eliminates the issue of simply missing a scheduled test or drinking around a testing schedule.

CAM is designed for long-term monitoring programs where abstinence is required. Breath, blood, and urine tests are accurate at testing for alcohol at a particular point in time. But are not reliable for 24/7 abstinence monitoring.

Because alcohol metabolizes much faster than drugs, it is in and out of the body very fast, leaving few residual indicators. Thus random or periodic testing can easily miss drinking, and experienced, hardcore drinkers can easily drink around those types of testing schedules.

A Sober DayTM is a 24-hour period where testing, at least once an hour, confirms there is no consumption and no attempt to circumvent testing.

Statistics

On any given day, 99.4% of clients monitored with SCRAM CAM are completely sober and compliant.

The average period of monitoring on SCRAM CAM is 87 days. 

As of 7/28/2014 SCRAM CAM has monitored 362,000 clients in 49 states and Canada. That equates to 1.35 million alcohol tests. 

Over the lifetime of SCRAM CAM, 78% of those monitored have been completely sober and compliant throughout their monitoring period. 

In 2009 the National Center for State Courts conducted a study to compare the recidivism rates of offenders who wore SCRAM bracelets to offenders who did not. The results were astounding. 

Only 2% of those sentenced to SCRAM CAM re-offended while being monitored.

SCRAM CAM was most effective when used with hardcore DWI offenders, defined as 2 or more convictions. Hardcore offenders saw a 45% decrease in recidivism, compared to those who did not wear SCRAM CAM. The longer they wore SCRAM CAM to ensure sobriety, the higher the rate of success. Offenders that wore SCRAM CAM more than 90 days had half the recidivism rate of offenders who wore SCRAM CAM for less than 90 days. 

NCSC recommends SCRAM CAM use for 6 to 12 months. 

Portable Remote Breath Monitoring

SCRAM Remote Breath-type monitoring technologies are ideal for low to mid-level risk alcohol offenders. 

While it does not provide the 24/7-level of monitoring intensity, it is appropriate for certain levels of offenders, either those who are considered “low level” or who have earned less intensive monitoring through a successful period on SCRAM CAM.

Courts and agencies are working to better assess offenders and balance their level of alcohol risk with the proper level of monitoring in order to improve long-term outcomes. Studies have shown that if you place a low-risk offender in a high-risk/intensive monitoring program, you can actually INCREASE the risk of long-term recidivism. Proper match of risk and need with level of supervision is key.

Ready to see SCRAM CAM or SCRAM Remote Breath in action? Schedule a demo today!

Call 800-464-5917 or visit us at www.continuousalcoholmonitoring.com.