Job details

Investigator (Brooklyn)

As the primary public defender in New York City, The Legal Aid Society’s staff zealously and tirelessly work to protect the rights of the most marginalized and disenfranchised in society. The expansive reach of The Legal Aid Society’s Criminal Defense Practice runs from its dynamic advocacy of clients in court to its presence and partnership in the communities.

Currently, The Legal Aid Society’s Criminal Defense Practice has multiple openings in The Brooklyn trial office. Investigators work closely with all members of the defense team under the direction of the Attorney-in-Charge. The caseload will include, but will not be limited to misdemeanors, domestic violence, burglaries, robberies, sexual assaults, and other serious felonies. This position requires considerable initiative, resourcefulness, creativity, and drive.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES/RESPONSIBILITIES

Locate and interview complainants, witnesses, defendants, and other relevant parties
Investigate crime scenes and other relevant locations
Document scenes (photographs, video, diagrams, measurements, etc.)
Create crime scene sketches/diagrams/maps
Prepare written summaries of investigation results via our case management system
Conduct background checks, internet, and social media investigations/research
Use databases to retrieve relevant case information (e.g., CLEAR, DMV, ACRIS, etc.)
Testify in court
Accompany defense players to crime scenes and relevant locations
Witness lineups and other police procedures (e.g., Ballistics test, examination of evidence at DA’s offices, vehicular inspection at NYPD Auto Yards, etc.)
Discover and manage physical and digital evidence (e.g., cellphones, surveillance video, social media, etc.)
Locate and extract surveillance footage from varying locations and buildings
Communicate with other city agencies as necessary
Provide accurate, detailed reports on investigations; as well as maintaining other necessary documents (e.g., chain of custody, witness statements, investigation summaries etc.)
Travel within borough as well as out-of-borough as needed
Communicate with client and client’s family and friends, as needed
Communicate with other members of staff/team to effectively analyze and discuss cases
Review detailed and voluminous discovery
Locate clients in-person, as needed
Serve subpoenas, motions and other legal documents, as needed
Perform field work during office hours as well as during irregular hours as directed
Other duties as assigned

Bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice or in a related field or demonstrated work experience
Prior experience conducting investigations on criminal cases preferred, including investigative internships
Commitment to obtaining justice for indigent persons and zealous defense representation required
Additional training/certifications relating to criminal investigations preferred
Ability to analyze and evaluate facts, as well as integrity and discretion.
Good listening and questioning skills
Familiarity with MS Office and social media platforms
Excellent written skills
Skillful interpersonal interactions
Requires field work during office hours as well as at irregular hours
Ability to travel 95% of time
Familiarity with borough neighborhoods
Spanish language fluency strongly preferred
Licensed Process Server preferred
Notary License preferred
Access to a vehicle for daily field work is required

SALARY TRANSPARENCY

The posting reflects the range of potential salaries for the role. The specific salary offers will be dependent on candidate qualifications, including collectively bargained salary steps for unionized roles.

Salary Range

$52,057 to $74,560

SALARY AND BENEFITS

The leadership of The Legal Aid Society believes in attracting and retaining exceptional talent committed to serving our clients. We offer a generous benefits package including health insurance, paid vacation, disability, and life insurance, and more. Salaries for our unionized jobs are governed by our Collective Bargaining Agreement. Please visit our Careers page for additional information. Salary and benefits information will be available to applicants, when and if, an offer is made.

OUR COMMITMENT TO DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND INCLUSION

The leadership of The Legal Aid Society is committed to a work culture of zealous advocacy, respect, diversity and inclusion, client-oriented defense, access to justice and excellent representation. We are dedicated to building a strong professional relationship with each of our clients, to understanding their diverse circumstances, and to meeting their needs. Our ability to achieve these goals depends on the efforts of all of us.

COVID VACCINATION INFORMATION

The Legal Aid Society is taking precautions and implementing safety measures to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 and to comply with New York City's requirements concerning Covid-19. All members of the Legal Aid community have a shared responsibility to support and comply with policies and protocols to protect the health and safety of our community. Learn more about our COVID-19 policy by visiting our website.

HOW TO APPLY

All applications must be completed online. We do not accept paper submissions. Please visit our Careers Page to review all current job postings, and instructions on the application process. For technical difficulties or questions regarding this posting, please email jobpostquestions@legal-aid.org.

As an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Employer, The Legal Aid Society prohibits discriminatory employment actions against and treatment of its employees and applicants for employment based on actual or perceived race or color, size (including bone structure, body size, height, shape, and weight), religion or creed, alienage or citizenship status, sex (including pregnancy), national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity (one’s internal deeply-held sense of one’s gender which may be the same or different from one’s sex assigned at birth); gender expression (the representation of gender as expressed through, for example, one’s name, choice of pronouns, clothing, haircut, behavior, voice, or body characteristics; gender expression may not conform to traditional gender-based stereotypes assigned to specific gender identities), disability, marital status, relationship and family structure (including domestic partnerships, polyamorous families and individuals, chosen family, platonic co-parents, and multigenerational families), genetic information or predisposing genetic characteristics, military status, domestic violence victim status, arrest or pre-employment conviction record, credit history, unemployment status, caregiver status, salary history, or any other characteristic protected by law.