Supervisory Pretrial Services Officer

Summary

The Division of Defendant Engagement and System Support (DESS) is recruiting for a Supervisory Pretrial Services Officer who independently supervises operational functions associated with the full range of PSA's defendant engagement services.

If you enjoy working with criminal justice stakeholders and want to promote public safety, then PSA is the place for you!

This is a secondary law enforcement position for eligible applicants (See the Requirement Section)

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Duties

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As a Supervisory Pretrial Services Officer, you will:

1. Supervise and provide leadership to unit staff responsible for the assessment, investigation, supervision, and monitoring of defendants throughout the pretrial process. Direct staff in conducting defendant interviews; gathering and verifying background information; researching criminal justice histories; assessing risk to public safety and risk of failure to appear; and preparing recommendations to the court regarding release conditions, program eligibility, electronic monitoring, treatment referrals, and other pretrial matters.
2. Oversee staff in the development and implementation of supervision plans for defendants designed to promote court appearance, reduce risk to public safety, and ensure compliance with court-ordered conditions, including electronic monitoring, drug testing, reporting requirements, treatment participation, and stay-away orders. Ensure staff continuously assess defendant behavior, respond appropriately to violations, and coordinate interventions to support defendant stability and compliance within the community.
3. Supervise staff responsible for preparing pretrial services reports, court reports, violation reports, and recommendations for submission to the court prior to judicial hearings. Ensure reports are accurate, timely, and address relevant factors including pending charges, criminal history, probation or supervision status, substance abuse concerns, community ties, flight risk, and public safety considerations. Testify in complex, unprecedented, or high-profile cases and explain PSA policies, procedures, and recommendations to judicial officers and stakeholders.
4. Ensure quality control and compliance with agency policies by reviewing court reports, recommendations, electronic monitoring documentation, treatment referrals, case records, and other unit work products. Ensure staff provide support to judicial officers regarding release orders and supervision conditions and maintain accurate documentation within PSA automated systems.
5. Monitor and evaluate staff utilization of PSA automated systems, electronic monitoring technologies, treatment tracking systems, and related databases to ensure accurate case management, timely updates, proper documentation, and preparation of regular and special reports for the court, attorneys, treatment providers, law enforcement agencies, and other authorized stakeholders. Ensure staff properly apply confidentiality rules governing the maintenance, protection, and release of sensitive defendants, treatment, and electronic monitoring information.
6. Supervise assigned staff by assigning work, establishing priorities, monitoring workload distribution, and evaluating employee performance. Administer leave policies and personnel programs in accordance with agency policies, affirmative action, and equal employment opportunity principles. Counsel employees on administrative and performance matters; interview and recommend candidates for employment; identify staff training and professional development needs; and provide ongoing coaching, mentoring, and corrective guidance to improve staff performance, operational effectiveness, and service delivery.
7. Collaborate with the Unit Chief, agency leadership, partner agencies, law enforcement, treatment providers, behavioral health organizations, and court stakeholders to ensure effective communication, coordinated case management, consistency in supervision practices, and efficient unit operations. Supports agency initiatives involving electronic monitoring, treatment compliance oversight, public safety strategies, and evidence-based supervision practices for high-risk defendants.
8. Perform special projects and assignments involving operational reviews, quality assurance initiatives, productivity assessments, policy implementation, and resolution of complex supervision or administrative issues. Analyze findings, prepare recommendations and report for management, and develop internal operating procedures, guidance, and training materials to support agency operations and improve program effectiveness.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

This announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies

Conditions of Employment

This position is designated as a secondary law enforcement position for purposes of law enforcement retirement provisions. Only candidates who have at least 3 years of current federal services in primary law enforcement officer positions OR current federal service in a secondary law enforcement position are eligible for law enforcement retirement coverage while occupying this position. Candidates who do not have the required service under federal law enforcement retirement provisions will be expected to sign a statement acknowledging that he/she will not be covered by law enforcement retirement.

1. Must be a U.S. Citizen

2. Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service

3. Suitable for Federal employment, determined by a background investigation

4. May be required to successfully complete a probationary period, if not already completed

5. All applicants are subject to a comprehensive criminal background investigation, and required to submit to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment

6. All Federal employees are required to have Federal salary payments made by direct deposit to a financial institution of their choice

7. Status applicants for promotion must have 52 weeks of service at the next lower grade

8. Time-in-grade requirements must be met by the close of this announcement

9. Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process.

10. Selected applicants maybe subject to working weekends and holidays.

11.Bargaining Unit Status: Not covered

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, you must meet the basic professional requirements, and specialized experience requirement below.

Basic Professional Requirement: This position requires a four-year degree in behavioral or social science or other related disciplines appropriate to the position; OR a combination of education and experience that provides you with knowledge of one or more of the behavioral or social sciences equivalent to a major in the field; OR four years of appropriate experience that demonstrate that you have knowledge of one or more of the behavioral or social sciences equivalent to a major in the field; AND

Specialized Experience: To qualify at the GS-13 level, you must possess one year of specialized experience that equipped you with the skills needed to perform the job duties. This experience must have been equivalent to at least the GS-12 grade level. Specialized experience is defined as experience in coaching and leading staff in assessing, evaluating, monitoring the case management, treatment and/or supervision of defendants or offenders in a criminal justice system.

NOTE : Your resume must clearly show the specialized experience related to this position. Failure to demonstrate how you possess the experience requirements will result in an "Ineligible" rating.

Education

There is no education substitution at this grade level.

You MUST provide transcripts or other documentation to support your educational claims. Unless otherwise stated: (1) official or unofficial transcripts are acceptable, or (2) you may submit a list with all of your courses, grades, semester, year, and credit for the course. All materials must be submitted by the closing date of the announcement.

PASS/FAIL COURSES: If more than 10 percent of your undergraduate course work (credit hours) was taken on a pass/fail basis, your claim of superior academic achievement must be based upon class standing or membership in an honor society.

FOREIGN EDUCATION: If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show that the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. For further information, visit:

Additional information

1. If you are an eligible Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP) applicant as defined by 5 CFR § 330.702, you may apply for special selection over other applicants for this position. The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) provides eligible displaced Federal competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. Click The Employee's Guide to Career Transition for more information on ICTAP eligibility.

2. If you are a current career or career-conditional Federal employee or former Federal employee who has reinstatement eligibility , you must submit a copy of your latest SF-50 "Notification of Personnel Action" and/or a copy of the SF-50 that reflects career or career-conditional tenure, or you will not be considered under the merit promotion process. Also, you should submit your most recent performance appraisal.

3. Veterans' Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 : Veterans who are preference eligible or who have been separated from the armed forces under honorable conditions after 3 years or more of continuous active duty service may apply. If you are applying under this provision, please submit a copy of your DD-214 (unedited long version).

4. You can apply for a non-competitive appointment if you meet the basic eligibility requirements and you are eligible for special appointment such as those authorized for the severely disabled; certain Vietnam era and disabled veterans; returned volunteers from the Peace Corps or AmeriCorps Vista , etc. Please indicate the type of special appointment you are seeking, if any, on your application and follow all other instructions for applying shown in this announcement.

5. All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement . Additional information on the qualification requirements is outlined in the OPM Qualifications Standards Handbook of General Schedule Positions. It is available for your review in our office, in other Federal agency personnel offices, and on OPM's web site at OPM Qualification Standards.

6. In accordance with Executive Order 14170 and the Merit Hiring Plan guidance issued by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, applicants for this position are invited to respond to four essay questions. These questions are designed to provide you with an opportunity to share your commitment to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution, as well as your dedication to public service. While your responses are not required and will not be scored, we encourage you to thoughtfully address each question. Please provide a response of 200 words or less to each question. You will be asked to certify that you are using your own words and did not use a consultant or artificial intelligence (AI) such as a large language model (LLM) like ChatGPT or Copilot. Click here to review the questions

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

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Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.