By Alex Morton

Capital News Service

During his 20 years as a state senator, Fred Quayle served on the Senate Courts of Justice Committee. The panel handled legislation to write or revise criminal laws, establish punishment levels and shape the parole system, he noted.

Quayle’s committee work and other legislative experience helped prepare him for his next role in state government — as a member of the Virginia Parole Board.

“That will serve me well in determining whether or not individuals convicted of crimes and seeking parole should be granted or denied and whether any conditions should be recommended,” Quayle said.

Gov. Bob McDonnell recently appointed Quayle, 75, to a four-year term on the Virginia Parole Board.

From 1992 through 2011, Quayle represented the 13th Senate District, which included parts of Suffolk, Hopewell, Franklin, Chesapeake and Portsmouth, as well as Surry, Isle of Wight and Southampton counties.

During the redistricting process, the 13th District was moved to Northern Virginia and is now represented by Sen. Richard Black, R-Sterling. Quayle was shifted into the 14th Senate District, represented by a fellow Republican, Harry Blevins of Chesapeake. Quayle decided to retire from the Senate last year, rather than challenge Blevins.

Quayle said he is looking forward to his service on the five-member Parole Board, which decides whether eligible inmates can be released from prison to serve the remainder of their sentences under supervision in the community.

Many factors play a role in deciding whether an inmate will be granted parole, Quayle said. The factors include the seriousness of the offense, possible danger to the public and whether the amount of time spent in prison was adequate punishment for the crime.

Quayle said being a Parole Board member is different from, but related to, being a legislator.

“I will be essentially enforcing the law, rather than making laws,” he said.

Quayle, a Suffolk native who earned a degree in economics from the University of Virginia and studied law at the University of Richmond, recently taught classes on state government and politics at both Old Dominion University and Christopher Newport University.