143B-1161. Justice Reinvestment Council.

(a) The Justice Reinvestment Council is established to act as an advisory body to the Commissioner of Adult Correction with regard to this Subpart. The Council shall consist of 13 members as follows, to be appointed as provided in subsection (b) of this section:

(1) Two members of the Senate.

(2) Two members of the House of Representatives.

(3) A judge of the superior court.

(4) A judge of the district court.

(5) A district attorney.

(6) A criminal defense attorney.

(7) A county sheriff.

(8) A chief of a city police department.

(9) A victim service provider.

(10) A member selected to represent behavioral health services.

(11) A member selected to represent substance abuse treatment services.

(b) The membership of the Council shall be selected as follows:

(1) The Governor shall appoint the following members: the county sheriff, the chief of a city police department, the member representing behavioral health services, and the member representing substance abuse treatment services.

(2) The Lieutenant Governor shall appoint the victim service provider.

(3) The Chief Justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court shall appoint the following members: the superior court judge, the district court judge, the district attorney, and the criminal defense attorney.

(4) The President Pro Tempore of the Senate shall appoint the two members of the Senate.

(5) The Speaker of the House of Representatives shall appoint the two members of the House of Representatives.

In appointing the members of the Council, the appointing authorities shall make every effort to ensure fair geographic representation of the Council membership and to ensure that minority persons and women are fairly represented.

(c) The initial members shall serve staggered terms. The members identified in subdivisions (1) and (2) of subsection (a) of this section shall be appointed initially for a term of one year. The members identified in subdivisions (3) through (7) of subsection (a) of this section shall be appointed initially for a term of two years. The members identified in subdivisions (8) through (11) of subsection (a) of this section shall be appointed initially for a term of three years. The terms of office of the initial members appointed under this section commence effective October 1, 2015.

At the end of their respective terms of office, their successors shall be appointed for terms of three years effective July 1. A vacancy occurring before the expiration of the term of office shall be filled in the same manner as original appointments for the remainder of the term. Members may be reappointed without limitation.

(d) The purpose of the Justice Reinvestment Council in conjunction with the Department of Public Safety, Division of Adult Correction and Juvenile Justice, is to:

(1) Recommend policy enhancements to the Justice Reinvestment Act of 2011.

(2) Assist in the continued education of criminal justice system stakeholders.

(3) Support implementation of the Justice Reinvestment Act of 2011.

(4) Identify new initiatives that further the implementation of the Justice Reinvestment Act of 2011 and the Adult Corrections Recidivism Reduction Plan.