Rowan County Chief District Court Judge Charlie Brown has been named to the N.C. Sentencing and Policy Advisory Commission.
Brown is one of 30 commission members who make recommendations to state lawmakers about changing sentencing laws and policies.
Prior work done by the commission led to the passage of the Structured Sentencing Act, which became effective in 1994. That law established “truth in sentencing” and prescribed sentencing options for judges based on the severity of the crime and the prior record of the offender.
The General Assembly created the commission in 1990 to suggest additions, deletions or expansions to sentencing options to achieve policy goals.
The N.C. Conference of District Court Judges appointed Brown to the commission. Superior Court Judge W. Erwin Spainhour leads the commission, which includes members from all three branches of government, all areas of the criminal justice system and from the public.
The commission publishes regular reports on sentencing statistics, recidivism, proposed legislation and community corrections, as well as reports of special studies mandated by legislation or initiated by the commission itself.
The commission has a nine-member staff in Raleigh.
Brown was elected to the Rowan County district court bench in 1998 and appointed chief in 2001.