Title: Criminalist Sr., DNA Analyst
Criminal Investigations Division
The Community
The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office (JCSO) was founded in November 1859 and today
serves 184,640 residents in the unincorporated areas of the county. The Sheriff's Office
has grown and advanced along with its communities. Today, it is one of the most
progressive law enforcement agencies in the nation. As the largest full-service sheriff's
office in Colorado, the agency has more than 550 sworn deputies and more than 250
non-sworn employees who provide services to the community. The mission of the
Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office is to work in partnership with our diverse communities
in providing excellence of service, criminal justice education and to promote mutual trust
and respect.
The Organization
The Jeffco Criminalistics Unit provides services in the following forensic disciplines:
Controlled Substances; Latent Prints; Crime Scene Response; Photography; and
Training. In 2008, the crime lab achieved full accreditation through the American
Society of Crime Laboratory Directors (ASCLD/LAB). In 2013, the crime lab achieved
ISO:17025 accreditation through ASCLD/LAB and continues to provide the best
services possible to law enforcement, the District Attorney’s office, and the citizens of
Jefferson County.
In 2013, the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office entered into an agreement with other Law
Enforcement agencies within Jefferson County to establish the Jefferson County
Regional Crime Laboratory (JCRCL). The JCRCL will serve the over 545,000 citizens of
Jefferson County. This new venture will feature a new 16,500 sq. ft. facility and offer
new forensic disciplines on site. The Criminalistics Unit currently has a single DNA
analyst housed in the State Crime Laboratory who prioritizes the sheriff’s office DNA
casework, while also providing the analyst as an extra resource to the state laboratory
system. This new facility will have the capacity to now house the Forensic Biology
(DNA) Unit and will include state of the art equipment and chemistries to provide
services to all of the Jefferson County law enforcement agencies. In 2015, the new
Firearms suite will be equipped and staffed to provide additional analysis capabilities.
The new crime laboratory facility, additional forensic disciplines and additional staffing
will give employees the opportunity to be on the ground floor of an exciting new
endeavor.
The Position
Under general supervision, perform technical criminalistics work for the Jefferson
County Sheriff's Office. Work involves performing various tests and analyses on
evidence in order to develop facts pertinent to criminal investigations including the
analysis of biological material from submitted evidence items; generating written
technical reports of all examinations or analyses performed, court preparation and
giving expert testimony in court proceedings. This analysis is performed primarily for law
enforcement agencies within Jefferson County. This position requires an advanced
ability/knowledge of the analysis of biological evidence and conduct training when
necessary. In addition, technical review of all reports, instrument maintenance, reagent
preparation and validation, proficiency training for all lab analysts, and maintenance of
all quality documents (court evaluations, training, proficiency notebooks, etc.). The
Senior Criminalist position is eligible to serve on the Quality Team and ensures that the
Laboratory's Quality system is being complied with by all personnel working inside the
laboratory. Includes maintaining all necessary requirements for laboratory accreditation.
Education and Experience Requirements
A Baccalaureate or an advanced degree in a natural science, criminalistics or a closely
related field is required. An advanced degree is preferred. Must meet the education
requirements of the Quality Assurance Standards for Forensic DNA Testing
Laboratories and Quality Assurance Standards for Convicted Offender DNA Databasing
Laboratories 3 to 5 years forensic laboratory experience preferred, and preference
may be given to individuals who also have Crime Scene experience. Direct experience
with Life Technologies equipment, organic extractions, robotic instrumentations,
PrepfilerTM Automate Express extractions, real time PCR and modern STR-PCR
techniques is preferred.
Compensation and Benefits
The anticipated hiring range is $62,520 - $80,371. The salary range for this position is
$62,520 - $90,406. Jefferson County offers a generous benefit package. This can be
reviewed at http://jeffco.us/jobs/ EEO.
How to Apply
To apply, visit http://jeffco.us/jobs/ and follow the links to the online application process.
Applicants must fully complete all components of the application, including
supplemental questions. Unofficial transcripts are required at the time of application.
Applications are due by Friday, February 14, 2014 by 5:00 pm MST. Questions about
the application process itself should be directed to KRW Associates LLC at
kduffala@comcast.net.