About the CCA
In 2021, the Virginia General Assembly passed legislation creating the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority (CCA).
As an independent, political subdivision, the Virginia Cannabis Control’s (CCA) mission is to promote public safety, advance public health, and protect communities in the Commonwealth through effective medical cannabis oversight and balanced and inclusive cannabis regulation, policy, and education.
The Authority is governed by a Board of Directors and supported by the Cannabis Public Health Advisory Council. The CEO of the CCA also sits on the Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Board.
CCA Leadership Team
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Jamie Patten
Acting Head and Chief Administrative Officer
Jamie Patten is an accomplished public servant whose more than two-decade career includes several leadership roles spanning across several Virginia agencies. Previously, she was at the Virginia Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) as the Deputy Director of Administration and Finance. She also served on DJJ’s Future Planning Group, which addressed the agency’s most pressing administrative challenges.
Jamie received her Master of Business Administration and Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Longwood University. She is also a graduate of the Virginia Executive Institute and the Virginia Public Safety Leadership Institute.
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Shawn Casey
Chief Government & External Affairs Officer
Shawn Casey joined the CCA in 2022 after practicing law for a decade. Before joining the CCA, Shawn was a Senior Assistant Attorney General in Colorado, where she advised the state’s Marijuana and Liquor Enforcement Divisions for five years. She began her legal career clerking for judges on both the Colorado Court of Appeals and the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado.
Shawn holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Virginia and a law degree from the University of Arizona Rogers College of Law.
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Nikeya Thomas, M.S.
Chief Licensing and Compliance Officer
Nikeya brings more than 13 years of experience in regulatory compliance, program management, policy development, enforcement, and stakeholder engagement to the CCA. Previously, she held leadership roles with the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, most recently as Program Manager for the Office of Hemp Enforcement. She helped develop the program and oversaw regulatory operations, compliance systems, budgets, personnel, and stakeholder engagement.
She began her career as a Food Safety Inspector and later worked in federal grant management, food safety, industrial hemp regulation, and program leadership. She has a passion for public service rooted in protecting Virginia consumers to ensure they have access to safe wholesome products. Nikeya holds a Bachelor of Science in Food and Nutritional Sciences from North Carolina A&T State University and a Master of Science in Biosecurity & Agricultural Life Sciences from Virginia Tech.
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Adam Ebbin
Senior Advisor
Former Senator Adam Ebbin served for more than 22 years in both chambers of the Virginia General Assembly, working with seven governors. He passed landmark legislation in 2020 to decriminalize marijuana and in 2021 to legalize possession by adults over 21. Ebbin chaired the assembly’s Cannabis Oversight Commission from 2021 to 2022.
Adam received the Virginia NORML Lifetime Achievement Award for his leadership on cannabis reform. He holds a BA from American University in Political Science and Public Communication, is a graduate of the University of Virginia’s Sorensen Institute for Civic Leadership, and was a Bohnett Fellow in the Harvard Kennedy School’s Senior Executives in State and Local Government program.
