Former North Carolina legislator, appeals court judge is next parole panel chairman
State Rep. Darren Jackson, D-Wake, right, speaks with House principal clerk James White during a special session at the General Assembly in Raleigh, N.C., Tuesday, July 24, 2018. North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper announced on Monday, July 3, 2023, that he has elevated Jackson to lead the North Carolina Post-Release Supervision & Parole Commission. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome, File)
A former North Carolina legislative leader and appellate court judge has been named the next chairman of the state parole commission.
Gov. Roy Cooper announced Monday that he's elevated Darren Jackson to lead the North Carolina Post-Release Supervision & Parole Commission.
The governor had just appointed Jackson to the commission in May. Jackson said he became chairman effective over the weekend, succeeding the retiring Bill Fowler, who had been on the panel since 2005 and chairman for the past six years.
The commission — its four members appointed by the governor — establishes conditions under which felons who complete their sentences are released or can be paroled under old sentencing rules.
Jackson, a longtime Wake County attorney, served in the state House for 12 years, with the last four as the Democratic leader. Cooper appointed him in late 2020 to fill a vacancy on the intermediate-level Court of Appeals. Jackson lost an election last November for a full eight-year court term.
Jackson previously served on the North Carolina sentencing and courts commissions.
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