Governor Roy Cooper has named Willis “Bill” Fowler to serve as chairman of the North Carolina Post-Release Supervision and Parole Commission.
“Bill Fowler’s deep knowledge of probation and parole issues make him the natural choice to lead this important Commission,” said Governor Cooper.
Commissioner Fowler has extensive experience with probation and parole and has served on the commission for more than a decade. He served as a Raleigh police officer and detective from 1964-1972 before joining the North Carolina Department of Correction as a parole officer. After the state's parole and probation systems merged, he supervised both probationers and parolees for many years. In 1983, Fowler was promoted to a parole hearing officer. He was a chief parole hearing officer when first appointed to the Parole Commission in July 2005.
The North Carolina Post-Release Supervision and Parole Commission sets the terms of post-release supervision for all inmates leaving the state prison system and determines responses to violations of parole and post-release supervision. The commission also makes decisions about parole for inmates who meet eligibility requirements established in North Carolina law.
The four members of the Commission are appointed by the Governor, who also selects one commissioner to serve as chairman. The majority of the Commission must agree to approve or deny parole for eligible offenders.