Mr. Cranston J. Mitchell was nominated to the United States Parole Commission by President George W. Bush. The nomination was confirmed by the United States Senate on March 6, 2003. President Barack Obama nominated Commissioner Mitchell for reappointment on May 21, 2009. On August 7, 2009, the Senate confirmed Commissioner Mitchell's reappointment.

At the time of Mr. Mitchell's appointment to the Parole Commission he was serving as a Correctional Program Specialist for the Department of Justice, National Institute of Corrections (NIC) in Washington, DC. Prior to the NIC position he spent approximately twenty five (25) years in state government, working for the State of Missouri. His longest tenure in state government was eighteen years (18) with the Missouri Department of Corrections as Chairman and Director of the Board of Probation and Parole. He also worked as a counselor and administrator in the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, Division of Vocational Rehabilitation, and as a police officer in the City of St. Louis, Missouri for seven (7) years.

Mr. Mitchell was the recipient of a Danforth Fellowship and was selected to attend the Program for Senior Executives in State and Local Government at Harvard University in Cambridge, MA. He was honored by the Association of Paroling Authorities, International and presented with the Vincent O'Leary Award for his contributions to the field of parole and Ben Baer Award for service to field of parole and community corrections. He also was the recipient of the Jonathan Jasper Wright Community Leadership Award given to him by the National Association of Blacks in Criminal Justice. He was also the recipient of the University of Missouri-St. Louis Outstanding Alumni Award. Mr. Mitchell is a native of St. Louis, Missouri and graduated from the University of Missouri-St. Louis with a BS degree, majoring in political science.