Commissioner: Aurelia Sands Belle

Aurelia Sands Belle is currently the Executive Director of the Durham Crisis Response Center in Durham, North Carolina that provides services to victims of domestic and sexual violence. She is also a current member of the North Carolina Governor’s Crime Commission.

Ms. Sands Belle earned a BA in Urban Studies from Oglethorpe University. She went on to earn a Master’s Degree in Community Counseling from Georgia State University. While in Georgia, Ms. Sands Belle became the first crime victim advocate appointed to serve on the Governor’s Criminal Justice Coordinating Council in Georgia and the Georgia Commission on Family Violence. She was also a founding member and President of Georgians for Victim Justice.

After moving to North Carolina, Ms. Sands Belle served as the Executive Director of the Rape Crisis Volunteers of Cumberland County in Fayetteville, North Carolina. She later became the Interim Executive Director of the North Carolina Coalition Against Sexual Assault.

Ms. Sands Belle is a noted crisis intervention trainer and has served on several national and local crisis response teams for incidents such as the World Trade Center explosion, the 1996 Centennial Olympics bombing, and an Ohio prison riot. She is also the recipient of many awards and honors including the Margery Fry Award by the National Organization for Victim Assistance; and the Presidential Award for Outstanding Service and Commitment to Crime Victims.