Chief Justice Mark Martin has made the following appointments to member vacancies on the N.C. Innocence Inquiry Commission and are effective immediately:

• District Attorney
  • Seth Edwards (two-year appointment – moved from alternate to main member)
  • Ashley H. Welch, alternate (two-year appointment to fill vacancy)
• Public member who is not an attorney and who is not an officer or employee of the Judicial Department
  • Secretary Frank Perry (three-year appointment)
  • Immanuel Jarvis, alternate (three-year appointment)
• Sheriff holding office at time of appointment
  • Sheriff Kevin Frye (reappointed to second three-year term)
• Vocation at discretion of Chief Justice
  • Rick Glazier (one-year appointment to fill vacancy)

“Each person appointed brings great practical experience, and I know that they will make significant contributions in their work with the Commission,” said Chief Justice Mark Martin.

The N.C. Innocence Inquiry Commission is a state agency established in 2006 by the N.C. General Assembly to investigate and evaluate post-conviction claims of factual innocence. The Commission is made up of eight members: a superior court judge, a prosecuting attorney, a criminal defense attorney, a sheriff, a victims’ rights advocate, a member of the public and two additional discretionary appointments. The Commission’s governing statute is found in Article 92 of the N.C. General Statutes.