Summary
This position is located in the Special Litigation Section, Civil Rights Division. The Section has the delegated authority to conduct investigations into allegations of unconstitutional conditions in correctional and juvenile facilities and disability institutions run by state and local governments. The Section's enforcement of these statutes generally requires extensive fact-finding prior to opening a formal investigation, during the investigation, and prior to filing a lawsuit.
This job is open to
The public
U.S. Citizens, Nationals or those who owe allegiance to the U.S.
Clarification from the agency
United States Citizens or National
This job is also open in another announcement to:
Career transition (CTAP, ICTAP, RPL)
Family of overseas employees
Federal employees - Competitive service
Individuals with disabilities
Land & base management
Military spouses
Peace Corps & AmeriCorps Vista
Special authorities
Veterans
Duties
As the federal agency whose mission is to ensure the fair and impartial administration of justice for all Americans, the Department of Justice is committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive work environment. To build and retain a workforce that reflects the diverse experiences and perspectives of the American people, we welcome applicants from the many communities, identities, races, ethnicities, backgrounds, abilities, religions, and cultures of the United States who share our commitment to public service.
The incumbent will serve as a Equal Opportunity Investigator in the Special Litigation Section's Corrections and Juvenile Justice Practice Group or in the Disability Practice Group. More information about these practice groups can be found on the Special Litigation Section website.
The Corrections and Juvenile Justice Practice Group works to protect people's constitutional and other federal rights involving conditions and practices in jails, prisons, and juvenile justice facilities; and the rights of children and adolescents in the juvenile and criminal justice system.
The Disability Practice Group seeks to enforce compliance with the integration mandate of the Americans with Disabilities Act which prevents the unnecessary segregation of persons with disabilities in institutions such as mental health facilities, nursing facilities, and other congregate settings. The Disability Practice Group also addresses substandard conditions in publicly owned disability institutions.
Duties include, but are not limited to:
Assesses the specific nature of the allegations in the assigned matter.
Reviews the allegations and supporting material; conducts preliminary research in computerized databases of newspapers and court decisions.
Drafts a memoranda setting forth analysis of the matter under the applicable civil rights laws and recommendations for further action, if any, including whether to open a full investigation.
Prepares investigative plans and conducts in-depth investigation, in consultation with Section attorneys and managers as appropriate.
Plans and conducts on-site investigation, including interviews of victims, witnesses, and staff.
Plans and manages document and statistical databases cataloging numerous incidents of alleged violations uncovered during the investigation.
Identifies and reviews relevant websites, and other online sources of information; contacts and interviews any complainants, advocates, and others with relevant information.
Assists attorneys in conducting contested litigation in federal court, including interviewing witnesses, gathering additional facts, communicating with expert witnesses to provide necessary factual information, and drafting affidavits, correspondence and other documents.
Tracking and validating defendants' compliance with settlements, consent decrees, and court orders, recommending appropriate action when deficiencies are identified.
Requirements
Conditions of Employment
Must be a U.S. Citizen.
Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered or exempt from Selective Service (see https://www.sss.gov/Home/Registration).
DOJ uses E-Verify, an internet-based system, to confirm the eligibility of all newly hired employees to work in the United States. Learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, by visiting www.e-verify.gov/.
You may be required to complete a pre-employment security screening to initiate your background investigation, which includes a drug screening. Continued employment is contingent upon successful completion and adjudication of your investigation.
May be required to successfully complete a one-year probationary period.
Only experience obtained by the closing date of this announcement will be considered.
DOJ's Residency Requirement applies to all DOJ applicants whose job location is within the U.S. In addition, for a total of three years (not necessarily consecutive years) of the five years immediately prior to applying for a position, the applicant must have: 1) resided in the U.S.; 2) worked for the U.S. overseas in a Federal or military capacity; or, 3) been a dependent of a Federal or military employee serving overseas.
Qualifications
Specialized Experience Requirements
In addition to the specialized experience, the following experience is preferred: Speaking, writing, listening, and reading in Spanish.
Language proficiency of at least Limited Working Proficiency, Plus (at least Level 2 , as defined in lnteragency Language Roundtable skill level descriptions (www.govtilr.org) in Spanish reading, writing, and speaking will be given positive consideration but is not a required qualification for this position. Applicants who indicate [language(s)] language proficiency will be evaluated on their language skills.
For the GS-12, you must have one year of specialized experience at a level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to the GS-11 grade level in the Federal service, public or other private sectors that is directly related to the position as listed above and which has equipped the candidate with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. Specialized experience for this position includes ALL of the following:

• Experience conducting investigations of law enforcement, correctional, disability or juvenile justice facilities, or disability service agencies for civil rights violations and making recommendations; AND
• Experience interviewing and communicating with witnesses and people who have been marginalized or traumatized; AND
• Experience locating, collecting, and interpreting data and documents to discover patterns of possible constitutional or discriminatory violations.

In order to be rated as qualified for this position, we must be able to determine that you meet the specialized experience requirement - please be sure to include this information in your resume. To be creditable, this experience must have been equivalent in difficulty and complexity to the next lower grade of the position to be filled. Specialized experience is defined as experience that has equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position and is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled.
Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional, philanthropic, religious, spiritual, community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.
All qualifications and education requirements (if applicable), must be met by the closing date of this announcement and clearly documented in your resume.
YOUR RESUME MUST support your responses to the online questionnaire and provide specific details as to how your experience meets the specialized experience as described in the vacancy announcement. If you are using experience to meet all or part of the qualification requirements, please ensure that your resume includes the month and year that you began and ended each position held or that position will not be credited toward meeting the specialized experience requirement. Part-time employment will be prorated in crediting experience. Failure to provide details will result in an ineligible rating. Your latest resume submitted for this vacancy announcement will be used to determine qualifications and supersedes previous submissions.
Education
This position does not have an education qualification requirement.
Additional information
Career Transition Assistance Programs: These programs apply to employees who have been involuntarily separated from a Federal service position within the competitive service or Federal service employees whose positions have been deemed surplus or no longer needed. To receive selection priority for this position, you must: (1) meet CTAP or ICTAP eligibility criteria; (2) be rated well-qualified for the position; and, (3) submit the appropriate documentation to support your CTAP or ICTAP eligibility. To be well qualified, you must satisfy all qualification requirements and rate equivalent to the Highly Qualified or better category using established category rating criteria. For more information visit: http://www.opm.gov/rif/employee_guides/career_transition.asp.
Schedule A: The Civil Rights Division welcomes and encourages applications from persons with disabilities and is firmly committed to satisfying its affirmative obligations under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 to ensure that persons with disabilities have every opportunity to be hired and advanced on the basis of merit within the Department. The Civil Rights Division also encourages eligible Schedule A applicants to submit their resumes directly to Diane Turner by email to Diane.M.Turner@usdoj.gov.
DOJ EEO Statement/Policy: https://www.justice.gov/jmd/page/file/1394116/download
Residency Requirement: The Residency Requirements ensure an adequate background investigation can be completed. It applies to all DOJ applicants, both U.S. citizens and non-U.S. citizens, whose job location is within the U.S. In addition, for a total of three years (not necessarily consecutive years) of the five years immediately prior to applying for a position, the applicant must have: 1) resided in the U.S.; 2) worked for the U.S. overseas in a Federal or military capacity; or, 3) been a dependent of a Federal or military employee serving overseas.
The Division's telework policy requires employees to be in the office at least four (4) days per pay period, or as required by the Division's policy.
Please Note: Additional candidates may be selected if more positions become available in the Division within 90 days after the HR office issues the selection certificate.
Benefits
How You Will Be Evaluated
You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.
In order to be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and application questionnaire, subject matter experts (SME) will review your resume to determine your technical qualifications for this position based on the required specialized experience. Applicants passing the structured resume review will move on to the next phase of the assessment process.
Your application will be evaluated and rated under DOJ's Category Rating and Selection Procedures. Once the announcement closes, a review of your resume and supporting documentation will be conducted by the HR Specialist. This information will be compared against your responses to the assessment questionnaire to determine your eligibility for Federal employment, and then whether you are qualified for this particular position. If it is determined you meet minimum qualification requirements, your application will then be placed in one of three categories: Best Qualified, Highly Qualified, or Qualified. Within these categories, applicants eligible for Veterans' Preference will receive selection priority over non-veteran preference eligibles.
Candidates will undergo a quality review to determine if they are highly qualified based on the content of their resume and their responses to the questionnaire. Best qualified candidates will be referred to the selecting official for employment consideration.
If a determination is made that you have inflated your responses when compared to your application materials, you may be deemed ineligible, or your score may be adjusted to more accurately reflect your skills and abilities.
Your qualifications will be evaluated on the following competencies:
Computer Skills, Creative Thinking, Decision Making, Information Management, Interpersonal Skills, Oral communication, Planning and Evaluating, and Writing
We recommend that you preview the online questions for this announcement before you start the application process. You may preview the assessment questionnaire by clicking here: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12312045
Required Documents
The following documents are required for your application to be complete. Our office cannot be responsible for incompatible software, illegible fax transmissions, delays in mail service, your system failure or downtime, etc. Encrypted and digitally signed documents will not be accepted. Failure to submit required, legible documents may result in loss of consideration. For additional information on uploading documents in USAJobs, please refer to this link: https://www.usajobs.gov//how-to/account/documents/upload/.
Required, Resume - All Applicants: To receive credit for experience contained in your resume, your employment history must include the start and end dates in the month and year format (MM/YYYY), and include the number of hours worked per week. Failure to follow this format may result in disqualification. Part-time employment will be prorated in crediting experience. Failure to provide details will result in an ineligible rating. (Cover letter optional). Please see - "USAJOBS - What should I leave out of my resume?" for specific information on what to leave out of your resume. Your latest resume submitted for this vacancy announcement will be used to determine qualifications and supersedes previous submissions.
Required: A complete Occupational Questionnaire
Required if you meet qualifications based on education: An unofficial college transcript (Note: If you are selected for this position, official transcript will be required prior to your first day.) and foreign education evaluation documentation, if applicable, as described under the "Qualifications" section of this vacancy announcement.
Required, Career Transition Assistance Program/Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program documentation, if applicable: If you are claiming CTAP/ICTAP eligibility, you must submit proof by the closing date of the announcement that you meet the requirements of 5 CFR 330.605(u) for CTAP and 5 CFR 330.704 for ICTAP or you will not receive priority consideration. The proof includes a copy of the Agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 Notification of Personnel Action for Competitive Appointment.
Worker's Compensation Separation: Agency certification of inability to place employee AND Notification of Separation OR Separation SF-50.
Disability Annuity Termination: Notification from OPM of disability annuity termination AND Separation SF-50 of the last position held.
Military Reserve or National Guard Technician Special Disability Retirement Annuity under 5 U.S.C. 8337(h) or 8456: Certification of special disability retirement annuity from a military department or National Guard Bureau AND Separation SF-50 of the last position held.
Required, if claiming Veterans Preference:
If you are a Discharged, Non-Disabled Veteran, you must submit a copy of your DD-214 showing character of discharge (Member 4 copy), or other Documentation of Service and Separation under Honorable Conditions, as listed on the SF-15. If you don't have your DD-214, you may request it after discharge from the National Archives.
If you are a veteran within 120 days of discharge, you must submit signed documentation from the Armed Forces certifying: 1) your expected release/retirement from active duty, 2) under honorable conditions, 3) your pay grade/rank/rate at time of discharge, 4) dates of active duty service, 5) any campaign or expeditionary medals received, & 6) dated within 120 days of your separation.
If you are a Disabled Veteran, Purple Heart Recipient, or Mother or Spouse of a Disabled or Deceased Veteran, you must submit all additional proof required by the SF-15, and if applicable, a completed SF-15. You may request a copy of your Department of Veterans Affairs letter from www.ebenefits.va.gov or call 1-800-827-1000 to establish proof of disability.
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:
Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.
How to Apply
Please read the entire announcement and all the instructions before you begin an application. To apply for this position, you must complete the online application and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section above.
Applicants will only be considered for the Eligibilities for which they claim in the job questionnaire AND must provide the supporting documentation. Applicants will not be considered for Eligibilities for which they did not claim, regardless of the documentation submitted with the application.
The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on 03/13/2024 to receive consideration. The application process is as follows:
To begin, click Apply to access the online application. You will need to be logged into your USAJOBS account to apply. If you do not have a USAJOBS account, you will need to create one before beginning the application. ~
Follow the prompts to select your resume and/or other supporting documents to be included with your application package. You will have the opportunity to upload additional documents to include in your application before it is submitted. Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process.
After acknowledging you have reviewed your application package, complete the Include Personal Information section as you deem appropriate and click to continue with the application process.
You will be taken to the online application which you must complete in order to apply for the position. Complete the online application, verify the required documentation is included with your application package, and submit the application.
To verify the status of your application both during and after the announcement open period, log into your USAJOBS account, all of your applications will appear on the Welcome screen. The application record in your USAJOBS account provides an "Additional Application Information" page that provides information regarding the documentation you submitted and any correspondence we have sent related to this application. The Application Status will appear along with the date your application was last updated. For information on what each Application Status means, visit: https://www.usajobs.gov//how-to/application/status/.
Reasonable Accommodations: This agency provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities where appropriate. If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process, please notify the agency. Determinations on requests for reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis.
Our office cannot be responsible for incompatible software, illegible fax transmissions, delays in mail service, your system failure or downtime, etc. Encrypted and digitally signed documents will not be accepted. Failure to submit required, legible documents may result in loss of consideration. If uploading documentation, do not identify/save your documents utilizing a special character such as %, #, @, etc. Documentation should be identified/saved as VA Letter, DD214, or Transcripts.
It is your responsibility to ensure your responses and all required documentation is submitted prior to the closing date. For additional information on uploading documents in USAJobs, please refer to this link: https://www.usajobs.gov//how-to/account/documents/upload/.
Agency contact information
Robin Hofmann
Email
Robin.Hofmann@usdoj.gov
Address
Civil Rights Division
950 Pennsylvania Ave. NW
Washington, DC 20530
US
Next steps
You will receive e-mail notifications as your application status is updated by DOJ. However, you can also see your application status any time by logging in to your USAJOBS account and looking on the "Applications" page. Click the position title to expand the display for each application in the list. Click here to learn more about checking your application status, or see what each application status means.
After a review of your complete application package you will be notified of your rating and/or referral to the hiring official. If further evaluation or interviews are required you will be contacted. If a tentative job offer is made, we will conduct a suitability/security background investigation.
We strive to extend a final offer of employment within 90 days from the close of this announcement.