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Indigent Defense Services

The NC Public Defense System

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Filed Under: Announcements

Following a thorough search and selection process, the IDS Commission has named Whitney B. Fairbanks as the next IDS executive director. This follows the announcement by current executive director, Mary Pollard, that she will retire this month. Fairbanks will serve a four-year term beginning August 10, 2026.

As the Commission and the agency prepare for this leadership transition, we express our appreciation to Mary Pollard for her exceptional leadership as executive director and for her dedicated service to indigent defense in North Carolina. We congratulate Mary and wish her the best as she enters this next chapter.

IDS will have more to share in the weeks ahead as we welcome our new executive director.

Information for Stakeholders

Recruitment, Interview and Selection Approach

The Commission worked closely with Prof. Timothy Heinle at the UNC School of Government to coordinate the application and search process, outlined below.

  • IDS Commission formed an ad hoc Executive Director Search Committee which determined the candidate search process and selection timeline. (Late May 2026)
  • The job vacancy was posted for one month beginning on June 1 and was advertised via NC Workday/state jobs website; IDS website, eBlast, and listservs; NLADA Job Board; NCBA Job Board; NCAPD Members; UNC School of Government blog post; law schools and alumni boards; and outreach to current and former IDS commissioners.
  • The Executive Director Search Committee selected candidates to sit for interviews with three separate panels including (1) IDS staff members; (2) State and Regional Defenders; and (3) chief public defenders from around the state.
  • Prof. Heinle collected and summarized feedback from all group participants and provided that information to the Commission along with feedback from candidate references.
  • In-person interviews of finalists were conducted by the IDS Commission at the UNC School of Government on July 29. Following closed-session deliberations, the Commission met in open session on August 7 to vote and name the new IDS executive director. The leadership transition is set to begin on August 10.