U.S. Probation Officer Assistant

Court Name/Organization: Texas Western Probation Office Overview of the Position:

The U.S. Probation Office for the Western District of Texas is accepting applications for the position of Probation Officer Assistant in El Paso, Texas. The incumbent provides technical support and services to probation officers in a wide range of areas, including supervision of persons on probation, parole or supervised release, and preparation of investigative reports.

Location: El Paso, TX Opening and Closing Dates: 04/23/2024 - 05/10/2024 Appointment Type: Permanent Classification Level/Grade: CL 25/14 Salary: $56,465 Link to Court Careers Information: https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/txwd?

Announcement Number: USPO 24-21 Link to Job Announcement

Position Description

The incumbent develops and maintains an understanding of, and commitment to, the policies, procedures, mission, goals, and values of the probation office; assists officers in performing probation investigations of all types for own office and other districts (i.e. collateral, presentence, postsentence, etc.); visits to various local law enforcement and court agencies to collect record information for both presentence investigation reports and collateral investigations will be required; collects and conducts urine tests to determine if offenders have been using alcohol and/or illicit drugs, and maintains appropriate records thereon.

Additional duties include: Assisting officers in performing offender supervision functions; providing necessary information to the court regarding violations of supervision; providing technical assistance and services in support of preparation and disclosure of presentence reports; observing and reporting to officers on the lifestyle, personal problems, and needs of offenders that become apparent during home visits or contacts with the offender, family, or employer; handling offender emergencies in the officer's absence.

May, under the guidance and direction of an officer, supervise a select caseload of low-risk persons on probation or supervised release, and may testify at violation proceedings before the court. Assists probation officers and offenders as needed to facilitate the ongoing and meaningful participation of offenders in required correctional treatment programming. May oversee community service projects, including the direct supervision of offenders working on community service projects; maintain record of work performed; report when offenders fail to comply with program requirements; and develop community services placement sites. Maintains files and case records as required and participates in and contributes to ongoing training programs.

Qualification

To qualify for this position, an applicant must be a high school graduate or equivalent. To qualify for a CL 24, one year of specialized experience is required.

To qualify for a CL 25, two years specialized experience is required. Specialized experience is progressively responsible experience requiring the regular and recurring application of keyboard skills and use of specialized terminology which demonstrated the ability to apply a body of rules, regulations, directives, or laws. Such experience is commonly encountered in probation and pretrial services offices, law firms, legal counsel offices, banking and credit firms, educational institutions, or social service organizations.

Preferred qualifications/skills:

• At least two years of college.

• Possess the ability to communicate effectively with a wide variety of people of diverse backgrounds.

• Possess good reasoning ability to allow development of the methods necessary to accomplish specific tasks/projects and to identify unusual problems for resolution or referral to probation officers.

• Possess the ability to write reports in a clear, concise, factual, and understandable manner.

• Possess the ability and demonstrate the willingness to increase knowledge and skills.

• Selectee must possess the ability and desire to function effectively and harmoniously in a team-based management organizational environment.

Physical requirements and Maximum Entry Age:

• The duties of a probation officer assistant require the investigation and management of convicted criminal offenders who present physical danger to probation officer assistants and to the public. In the supervision, treatment, and control of these offenders, these duties require moderate to arduous physical exercise, including prolonged periods of walking and standing, physical dexterity and coordination, and use of self-defense tactics. On a daily basis, the probation officer assistant faces unusual mental and physical stress because they are subject to danger and possible harm during frequent, direct contact with individuals who are convicted of committing Federal offenses.

• Because a probation officer assistant must effectively deal with physical attacks and is subject to moderate to arduous physical exertion, applicants must be physically capable. Any candidate the court is appointing to a probation officer assistant position will be subject to a pre-employment medical examination.
  
  The applicant must be determined medically qualified prior to commencement of duties. For additional information on the medical guidelines, please visit the Court's website - click on Court Info>Jobs, then Officer and Officer Assistant Medical Guidelines.

• First time appointees to positions covered under law enforcement officer retirement provisions must not have reached their 37th birthday at the time of appointment. Applicants 37 or over who have previous law enforcement experience under the Civil Service Retirement System or the Federal Employees' Retirement System and who have either a subsequent break in service or intervening service in a non-law enforcement officer position may have their previous law enforcement officer experience subtracted from their age to determine whether they meet the maximum age requirement.

Background Investigation, Drug Screening and Medical Standards:

Prior to appointment, the selectee considered for this position will undergo an extensive Office of Personnel Management (OPM) background investigation, medical examination, and drug screening. Upon successful completion of the background investigation, medical examination, and drug screening, the selectee may then be appointed provisionally, pending a favorable suitability determination by the court.

In addition, as a condition of employment, the incumbent will be subject to ongoing random drug screening, updated background investigations every five years and as deemed necessary by management for reasonable cause, may be subject to subsequent fitness-for-duty evaluations and drug screening. In addition, officer assistants are subject to updated background investigations every five years and will be subject to random drug screening. If a provisional hire is authorized, continued employment will be contingent on successful completion of the OPM investigation.

How To Apply

• Position Title

• Job Number

• Email Address

• College degree, if any, and date graduated or college hours accumulated, if any

• Bilingual: English/Spanish or not - Fluency in English and Spanish is desirable but not required.

• Level of computer literacy - list software most often used

• Date of Birth, including year born

Please visit www.txwp.uscourts.gov for more information.

The U.S. Courts reserves the right to modify the conditions of this job announcement, or to withdraw the announcement, any of which may occur without prior written or other notice.

More than one position may be filled from this posting. In the event that a position becomes vacant in a similar classification, within a reasonable time of the original announcement, the Court Unit Executive may elect to select a candidate from the applicants who responded to the original announcement without posting the position. The Court is not authorized to reimburse travel expenses for interviews or relocation.

This position is subject to mandatory electronic direct deposit of salary payments. All applicants must be a U.S. citizen or must be a lawful permanent resident (i.e., green card holder) and seeking U.S. citizenship. Applicants are advised that false statements or omission of information on any application materials may be grounds for non-selection, withdrawal of an offer of employment, or dismissal after being employed.

Employees of the U.S. Courts serve under "Excepted Appointments" and are considered "at-will" employees (except for probation officers who may be removed for cause). All employees are required to adhere to the Code of Conduct for Judicial Employees (available for review upon request). Applicants scheduled to interview should advise the Human Resources staff if any accommodation is needed.

The federal Judiciary is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer.