The Office of the Public Defender, District 24, seeks a qualified individual to investigate all areas of serious misdemeanor and felony indigent defendants' cases that have been assigned by the courts to the Public Defender's Office.
Duties include but are not limited to the following:
Investigate serious misdemeanor and felony cases to collect information used to verify evidence or to substantiate innocence.
Visit clients in jail to conduct initial interviews, and when indicated, consider the appropriateness of and expedition of bond reduction.
Determine through a detailed interview what facts, opinions, or background information witnesses have that is relevant to the case and prepare a written report, and/or evaluate information with the assigned attorney.
Photograph, measure, and draw the crime scene to scale to determine its relationship to the physical evidence.
Arrange defense expert witnesses, review experts' credentials, evaluate their potential effectiveness with the jury, and coordinate delivery of evidence to experts.
Research criminal histories of defendants, witnesses, and potential jurors.
Ensure appearance of witnesses at time of trial and assist in witness preparation.
Assist counsel with facts of the case during trial potentially testify during trials you are assigned to investigate.
Conduct special investigations as directed.
Make contact with various professionals for case related information
Serve subpoenas.
Knowledge of: criminal law and the local court system; evidence collection, investigation, and identification techniques and procedures; and information sources and the ability to extract information from those sources.
Skill in: computers and word processing to prepare reports, motions, orders, subpoenas, and other legal documents; and effectively communicate with people of diverse backgrounds both orally and in writing.
Ability to: plan and organize an effective approach to the investigation of complex cases and to independently develop leads; schedule work to achieve results on time; prepare clients, their families, and witnesses for court; work irregular hours in conducting investigations; make pertinent observations and to analyze those observations with the charges in a given case; and inspire the confidence of the community in the public defender's office.
Valid North Carolina driver's license required.
Minimum Education and Experience Requirements
Graduation from a four year college or university, preferably in the field of law, criminal justice, psychology, or sociology, and one (1) year of experience in legal, judicial, law enforcement or investigative work. An associate degree with three (3) years of experience in the above-mentioned fields may substitute for the four year college degree requirement. Other combinations of education and experience that provide the requisite knowledge, skills, and abilities may be considered.
No law enforcement or probation/parole experience needed.