CUMBERLAND COUNTY JUVENILE CRIME PREVENTION COUNCIL BY-LAWS 

    ARTICLE I: NAME AND PURPOSE 

1.         NAME – The name of this body shall be the Cumberland County Juvenile Crime  Prevention Council hereafter referred to as CCJCPC. 

2.            PURPOSE – The purpose of the CCJCPC shall be to: 

2.1             Recommend to the citizens of Cumberland County comprehensive and coordinated community programs to serve the best interests of youth coming within the intended scope of such programs. 

2.2             Ensure that appropriate community based programs for Level 1 and Level 2 sanctions are available for at risk and adjudicated juveniles, pursuant to minimum standards set by the North Carolina Office of Juvenile Justice.                       

2.3             Conduct an annual needs assessment of Cumberland County youth who are at-risk of entering the juvenile justice system or who have entered the juvenile justice system. 

2.4             Recommend an annual plan for the effective development, use, and control of local, state, and federal resources for the provision of comprehensive community youth services designed for prevention, intervention and treatment of juvenile offenders. 

2.5             Evaluate performance and outcomes of programs funded by the CCJCPC to measure their effectiveness as a condition to considering continued funding of programs.      

2.6           Report to the Cumberland County Board of Commissioners, at least annually, and maintain regular communication with the Commissioners throughout the year. 

2.7             Explore and recommend alternative funding sources, including private corporations and foundations, to support CCJCPC programs. 

2.8           Increase public awareness into the causes of delinquency and prevention efforts. 

2.9             Develop prevention and intervention strategies for at risk youth. 

   ARTICLE II.  MEMBERSHIP 

1.       The Cumberland County Board of Commissioners shall appoint membership.  Names of prospective members for the CCJCPC will come from either (1) the County Commissioners, or (2) recommendations to the County Commissioners from the CCJCPC.

 2.       Composition of the council shall include:

School superintendent or designee, chief of police or designee, county sheriff or designee, district attorney, or designee, chief court counselor or designee, director of mental health or designee, director of social services or designee, county manager or designee,  a substance abuse professional, a member of faith community, a county commissioner, a person under the age of 21, a juvenile defense attorney, chief district judge or designee judge, a member business, health director of designee, a United Way or nonprofit representative, a parks and recreation representative, and up to seven at large members appointed by the county commissioners. 

3.       Board members will consist of no more than 25 voting members selected for 2 year terms; however, the first year ½ of the members will be selected for a 1 year term and ½ for a 2 year term.  Thereafter each member shall be elected for  2-year terms.  Member may be re-appointed at the end of their term. 

4.       The Chairperson shall advise the County Commissioners of members who need to be replaced because of resignation, limited interest participation, or conflict of interest.

 5.       Board members representing agencies or organizations receiving funds under a project grant will refrain from discussion and voting. 

   ARTICLE III. OFFICERS 

1.           The officers shall include a Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, and Secretary.           

2.           Officers shall be elected by the CCJCPC membership at their January monthly meeting of each year. New officers will assume office on July 1. 

3.           Officers shall be elected for a one-year term and may succeed themselves.  

                                    Duties:

 1.           CHAIRPERSON:  Shall preside over all meetings and shall appoint special committees unless otherwise specified by the by-laws. The Chairperson shall act as an advisor to subcommittees he/she appoints but not serve in a voting capacity on the sub-committee.  The Chairperson will serve as a liaison between the County Commissioners, OJJ Regional Consultants, and other groups or representatives that may be necessary and report on these activities to the CCJCPC. The Chairperson or his/her designee shall be responsible for notifying members of all CCJCPC meetings, special meetings, and Executive Committee meetings.

 2.           VICE-CHAIRPERSON:  Shall serve as acting Chairperson in the absence of the Chairperson and as such, shall have the same powers and duties of the Chairperson when presiding.  In the event that the Chairperson does not complete his/her term of office, the Vice Chair may serve out the unexpired term of the Chairperson.

 3.           SECRETARY: Shall insure the recording of monthly minutes of meetings and shall insure the distribution of the minutes to each CCJCPC member with a copy forwarded to the County Commissioners. The Secretary will maintain a permanent record of the minutes and other important documents in manual form and shall make these records available to any CCJPCP member or County Commissioner, if requested. 

     ARTICLE IV.  MEETINGS

1.3            All business will be transacted at Council meetings.

1.4            Membership shall be notified of all meetings in writing or by phone at least five days prior to the meeting.

2.            SPECIAL MEETINGS

 2.1   The Chairperson may call such special meetings as deemed necessary to carry out the duties of the CCJCPC.

     2.2   Notice of special meetings shall be given to all members of the CCJCPC in writing or by phone at least (3) days in advance.

   ARTICLE V.  ELECTIONS 

1.       A Nominating Committee of (5) persons shall give their recommendations to the CCJCPC at the regular January CCJCPC meeting for officer positions. 

2.       Additional nominations may be made from the floor at the regular January CCJCPC meeting. 

3.       All officers are elected by a majority vote, if a quorum is present, of the CCJCPC members present at the regular January meeting.

     ARTICLE VI.  EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE 

1.   The executive committee shall be the Officers, immediate past Chairperson (CCJCPC), a designee of the County Manager and the Chief Court Counselor or his or her designee, and Committee Chairpersons. 

2.   The Executive Committee shall be empowered to act on behalf of the CCJCPC between regular meetings except in funding issues, which require a vote of the CCJCPC. 

3.   The Executive Committee has the following powers and duties: 

Section 3 is amended as of 11-14-01 to read in its entirety as follows: 

3.1        Perform duties as CCJCPC entrusted to the committee. 

3.2        The Executive Committee must present in writing at the next regularly scheduled CCJCPC meeting, for informational purposes, any discussions and action taken while acting on behalf of the Council. In cases of funding where a delay to the next scheduled meeting would not be detrimental to the purposes of the CCJCPC or its funded programs, any decision shall be acted on by the CCJCPC at such next regularly scheduled meeting. In cases of funding where a delay to the next scheduled CCJCPC meeting would be detrimental to the purposes of the CCJCPC or its funded programs, the Executive Committee may act thereon and act on such decision provided the full membership of the Executive Committee is present at the Executive Committee meeting at which such decision is acted upon. The Executive Committee shall cause its finding regarding such detriment to be entered into its minutes of that meeting.  

   ARTICLE VII.  STANDING COMMITTEES 

1.        Each CCJCPC member shall be appointed to at least one committee of the CCJCPC. 

2.        The CCJCPC shall have four (4) standing committees which shall be: 

2.1    Planning Committee:  

Major duties and responsibilities: Plan and carry out the process of determining the needs of youth in Cumberland County and putting these needs in priority order. Provide a thorough orientation to new CCJCPC members. 

2.2    Monitoring and Evaluation Committee:

Evaluate submitted program proposals and make recommendations to the CCJCPC. 

Assist program managers and/or contact persons with monitoring and evaluating process as applicable. 

Develop monitoring and evaluation instrument for receiving program proposals and existing programs. 

Other related assigned duties and responsibilities. 

2.3    Finance Committee:        

This committee will work with the funding sources and programs to help assure proper utilization of funds and will keep abreast of the availability of funding sources and resources. 

2.4    Nominating Committee and other special assignments (awards, new members): Major duties and responsibilities: Recommend nominees for officers to the CCJCPC:

Chairperson

Vice-Chairperson

Secretary 

Recommend nominee for annual outstanding service award to the CCJCPC. 

Recommend membership to the CCJCPC and the Cumberland County Commissioners for final approval. 

3.        The Chairperson may appoint other committees and sub-committees deemed necessary to carry out the general purpose of the CCJCPC. 

4.        Each Committee shall be delegated to full powers and authorities of the CCJCPC to carry out such functions and duties as are contained in their charge with the following: 

4.1    All actions are consistent with operating procedures for the Committee, which have been approved by the CCJCPC and with policies established by the CCJCPC. 

4.2    A written report of all committee decisions or recommendations shall be presented to the CCJCPC at its next regular or special meetings. 

5.        All committee actions shall be subject to ratification by the CCJCPC at its next regular or special meeting.               

6.        Each committee chairperson or his/her designee shall be responsible for covering and presiding over such committee meetings as are necessary and shall be responsible for notification of all meetings to include the date, time, and place of said meeting. 

   ARTICLE VIII VOTING 

1.       Each member of the CCJCPC is entitled to vote on all issues coming before the CCJCPC, except where a conflict of interest may exist.  A conflict of interest exists if a person is paid out of JCPC funds or supervises someone paid out of JCPC funds.

     ARTICLE IX. INACTIVITY 

1.       Members shall be considered to be inactive and subject to replacement when they have missed more than three (3) consecutive CCJCPC meetings without a written or oral explanation to the Chairperson as to why they were unable to attend the meeting. 

2.       If a member is replaced or resigns, the members and the County Commissioners shall be notified accordingly. 

   ARTICLE X. CONFLICTS OF INTEREST  

1.       Whenever a member has reason to believe that the actions of any member may be in violation with state conflict of interest laws, he/she shall immediately notify the Chairperson. 

2.       No member shall knowingly vote on any matter which may result directly or indirectly in financial advancement for himself or any member of his family, including in-laws. 

   ARTICLE XI. AMENDMENTS 

1.       Any proposed amendments must be brought before the CCJCPC at least one meeting prior to the meeting in which the vote will be taken. 

2.       Amendments to the by-laws are permissible with an affirmative vote provided there is a quorum present. 

3.       All amendments are subject to the approval of the County Commissioners. 

     ARTICLE XII. UNAUTHORIZED USE OF  THE CUMBERLAND COUNTY JUVENILE CRIME PREVENTION COUNCIL NAME 

1.           No member or committee is to use the name of the CCJCPC for any purpose other than one clearly authorized by the CCJCPC and consistent with CCJCPC policy.