Louisiana § RS 15:323 - Composition of commission

§ RS 15:323. Composition of commission

A.  The commission shall be composed of twenty-five members.  Twenty members shall be voting members as designated in Subsection B of this Section, and five members shall be nonvoting members as designated in Subsection D of this Section.

B.(1)  Five voting members of the commission shall be as follows:

(a)  A member of the House of Representatives appointed by the speaker of the House of Representatives.

(b)  The chairman of the House Committee on Administration of Criminal Justice.

(c)  One member of the Senate appointed by the president of the Senate.

(d)  The chairman of the Senate Committee on Judiciary, Section C.

(e)  One justice of the Supreme Court of Louisiana appointed by the chief justice.

(2)  Fifteen voting members shall be appointed by the governor as follows:

(a)  One district attorney, or his designee and the president of the Louisiana District Attorneys Association, or his designee.

(b)  The state public defender or his designee and one attorney specializing primarily in the defense of persons charged with criminal offenses.

(c)  One sheriff or his designee and the president of the Louisiana Sheriff's Association, or his designee.

(d)  One judge of a court of appeal.

(e)  Three district court judges having criminal justice experience, at least one of whom must be active.

(f)  One member selected from a list of three nominees submitted by the Louisiana Chamber of Commerce.

(g)  The president of the Louisiana Clerks of Court Association or his designee.

(h)  One Louisiana citizen who is not an attorney, who is not formally associated with the criminal justice system, and who is a felony crime victim or a member of the immediate family of a felony crime victim, from a list of three names submitted by Victims and Citizens Against Crime, Inc.

(i)  One person with experience and expertise in the juvenile justice system including matters related to juvenile adjudications and dispositions and their impact on the juvenile, the family of the juvenile, and public safety.

(j)  A judge with experience in hearing juvenile cases on his or her docket.

C.  Except as provided in R.S. 15:323(B)(1), voting members shall serve for a term concurrent with that of the governor.

D.  The following persons shall serve as the five nonvoting members of the commission:

(1)  A representative of the Louisiana State Law Institute as designated by its president.

(2)  A representative of the Louisiana Commission on Law Enforcement and Administration of Criminal Justice as designated by its chairman.

(3)  The secretary of the Department of Public Safety and Corrections, or his designee.

(4)  One professional having a doctorate degree in a social science or criminal justice field appointed by the governor.

(5)  The deputy secretary of the Department of Public Safety and Corrections, youth services, office of juvenile justice, or his designee.

E.  Each appointment by the governor shall be subject to Senate confirmation.

F.  Legislative members of the commission shall receive the same per diem and reimbursement of travel expense as is provided for legislative committees under the rules of the respective house.  Nonlegislative commission members shall serve without compensation or per diem.

G.(1)  Subject to the provisions set forth in Paragraph (2) of this Subsection, each voting member shall be entitled to appoint a single individual to serve as proxy for the duration of his term if the member is unable to attend a meeting of the commission.  The term of the designated proxy shall be the same as the voting member.  A member appointing an individual to serve as his designated proxy shall make his appointment known to the chairman and to the secretary of the commission.

(2)(a)  An individual appointed to serve as proxy for a voting member described in Subparagraph (B)(1)(a), (b), (c), or (d) of this Section shall be a member of the legislature.

(b)  An individual appointed to serve as proxy for a voting member described in the provisions of Subparagraph (B)(1)(e) or Subparagraphs (B)(2)(a) through (B)(2)(h) of this Section shall have the same qualifications, or shall be a member of the same entity, as the voting member for whom he is serving.

(3)  The proxy appointed by the voting member shall not be subject to the same nominating and appointment procedures as is required for the voting member for whom he is serving and shall not be subject to Senate confirmation as required by the provisions of Subsection E of this Section.

(4)  An individual shall not serve as proxy pursuant to the provisions of this Subsection for more than one voting member of the commission.

Acts 1987, No. 158, §1; Acts 1988, No. 783, §1, eff. July 18, 1988; Acts 1995, No. 548, §1; Acts 2008, No. 916, §1; Acts 2010, No. 856, §1; Acts 2014, No. 86, §1.

NOTE:  See Acts 1988, No. 783, §2.