State Senator Whitney Westerfield of Christian County has been appointed as co-chair of the interim Jail and Corrections Reform Task Force.
The task force will be responsible for analysis of existing jail and correctional facilities, adequacy, management, personnel, other costs, pretrial and post-conviction incarceration data, and incarcerated populations matters.
That’s according to a news release, which says he will also serve as a member of the Judicial Structuring and Redistricting Task Force, that will study the Judicial Branch and the effect it has on the administration of justice, determination of the impact of venues in the resolution of cases, management of caseloads, redistricting of judicial districts to address population disparities, as well as improvements in efficiency through possible restructuring or realignment of the judiciary.
Senator Westerfield is quoted as saying, “Our jail and prison populations present a number of challenges, and our statewide court system has not been redistricted since the modern court system was created in 1975, harming people’s access to the courts. Clearly, there is always room for improvement and the COVID-19 crisis compounds these issues.”