Police Service Officer

City of Aberdeen; Aberdeen (WA); On-site; USD 52,000 - 76,000; Full time

Job summary

City of Aberdeen seeks a Police Services Officer to perform routine and specialized public safety work, including care and custody of prisoners and related clerical duties. The role may involve armed duties and requires independent judgment, accurate data entry, and strong knowledge of criminal law and procedures.

You will screen requests for service, assist patrol, and direct inquiries at the lobby, while ensuring security and compliance with policies. Shift work may be required.

Qualifications

• Strong knowledge of city/state criminal law and procedures.
• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with staff.
• Apply guidelines to make non-routine judgments with limited information.
• Firm and tactful dealing with the public; enforce actions as required.
• Knowledge to use reasonable force when necessary.
• Clear oral and written communication; use of radio and computer tools.
• Shift-work capability and ability to work independently.
• Operate office equipment and police records systems.
• Operate department police vehicle when assigned.
• Experience or certification as Washington State Corrections Officer or Peace Officer.
• Training in firearms and other weapons.
• State ACCESS Level II certification or ability to obtain within six months.
• Experience with Spillman RMS records processing.

Responsibilities

• Receive, process, and release prisoners at the city jail or contract jail facility.
• Administer and supervise prisoner meals, visitations, recreation, counseling, and daily care.
• Obtain medical, dental, and mental health attention for prisoners as required.
• Transport prisoners to court or other facilities.
• Answer calls related to jail, records, or citizen inquiries; relay radio messages.
• Maintain security and control in the police station and courtroom areas.
• Maintain jail records and daily logs; process inmate records and incidents.
• Input and retrieve data in criminal records systems; update vehicle registrations and warrants.
• Provide technical information about police records and logs; deliver records to agencies.
• Complete written/computerized police reports documenting activity and actions.
• Possess weapons and defensive skills as needed to control subjects and protect custody.
• Inspect jail facilities for cleanliness and maintenance.
• Perform records duties and monitor telephones and jail video systems in absence of staff.
• Serve arrest warrants and civil papers to inmates.
• Fingerprint the general public for permits, visas, or licenses.

Skills

Criminal law

Criminal procedures

Public safety

Communication skills

Independent judgement

De-escalation

Education

Washington Corrections Officer

Washington Peace Officer

Tools

Spillman RMS

ACCESS systems

Job description

The Police Services Officer provides a variety of routine and specialized public safety work relating to the care and custody of prisoners in the city jail; conducts transports of prisoners between city jail, the court and other correctional facilities; and provides specialized clerical support to the department's criminal records function. This position may also assist patrol officers by screening and responding to requests for service from citizens who arrive at the police lobby, directing traffic at accident/emergency scenes and performing other generally non-sworn police service functions.

Police Services Officers are expected to interact with members of the public and have a strong working knowledge of criminal law and criminal procedures. Work is performed in accordance with department policies, procedures, rules and guidelines. Shift work may be required. This position involves an element of personal danger requiring the Police Services Officer to be able to act without direct supervision. The Police Services Officer must exercise independent judgment in meeting routine and emergency situations.

The Police Services Officer must maintain care, order and discipline amongst city prisoners, perform specialized clerical functions related to police criminal records, and screen and respond to general requests for service from citizens in the police lobby.

Assignments are received through the patrol shift supervisor on-duty in addition to requests from the investigations supervisor and department administrators. The patrol shift supervisor reviews work methods and results through written reports, observations and discussions.

The Police Services Officer may be an armed position and carries a limited law enforcement commission necessary to enforce certain city ordinances and regulations.

The following work functions are inherent in this position, but other duties may be assigned:

• Receive, process, and release prisoners at the department's city jail or contract jail facility.
• Administer and supervise prisoner meals, visitations, recreation, counseling, work assignments and other day-to-day prisoner care needs.
• Obtain professional attention (including medical, dental, and mental health) for prisoners as required.
• Makes periodic searches of the facility and inmates for contraband and weapons.
• Transport prisoners outside of the jail facility to court, other agencies, appointments, or to other contract jail facilities.
• Answer telephone calls to the station related to the jail, police records or general citizen inquiries; receive and transmit radio messages between the jail/station and field personnel on department tactical channel.
• Maintain security and control in all areas of the police station, the courtroom (if requested) and at the scene of accidents, disasters, emergencies, or static crime scenes.
• Receive and receipt money submitted to the department for the purpose of jail or police records functions (to include bail money posted during the absence of the court clerk).
• Maintain and complete documented records of jail activities to include daily logs, booking records, department reports on jail or prisoner violations and other forms as required.
• Order and maintain supplies necessary to operate the city jail or general health and welfare functions within the station.
• Input and retrieve data accurately through the department and state/national criminal computer records systems; accesses, updates and enters information to include vehicle registrations, driver's licences, warrants, stolen vehicles, firearms/property, evidence, missing persons, restraining/no-contact orders and other criminal records.
• Provides technical and policy information about police records, processes, handles and logs requests for records, delivers police records to other police agencies, prosecutor and court in timely manner and maintains police records per legal guidelines and retention schedules.
• Accurately complete written/computerized police reports and other department forms as required to document Police Services Officer activity, enforcement action or work performed.
• Ability to use assigned department weapons (including firearms if assigned), as well as physical defensive tactics to defend self and others, effect physical arrests of combative subjects and maintain custody of prisoners at all times.
• Inspects jail facilities for cleanliness to assure the facilities are sanitary and maintained according to established procedures. Makes minor repairs and performs general maintenance of facility.
• Performs records section duties such as maintaining computerized records and monitoring telephones, the police radio and jail video screens in the absence of a police services specialist.
• Serves arrest warrants in accordance with a special commission; serves civil papers to inmates.
• Does fingerprinting for the general public for permits, visas or licenses.

Performs other related duties as required

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform all essential job duty functions satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill and/or ability required:

• Strong working knowledge and ability to apply city and state laws/ordinances- to include issues related to safety, care and custody of prisoners, police and criminal records, nuisance abatement/code enforcement and general law enforcement related inquiries.
• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with other city and department staff.
• Apply established guidelines, policies, procedures, regulations and reasonable alternatives to make non-routine judgments and decisions- often with limited information or at the spur of the moment.
• Be able to deal firmly and tactfully with the public/Take enforcement action as necessary and required.
• Ability and knowledge to use necessary and reasonable legal force to control prisoners and other persons as required.
• Ability to effectively communicate orally and in writing, including radio, phone and computer-based programs or forms.
• Capable of working shift-work and work independently without continual or immediate direct supervision.
• Ability to operate various office equipment, to include computer programs related to general office functions (such as word processing) as well as specialized department (Spillman RMS) and state/national police criminal record systems (ACCESS).
• Capable of operating a department police vehicle (including jail van) in a safe manner in accordance with legal and department guidelines.
• Experience/certification as a Washington State Corrections Officer, or Experience/ certification as a Washington State Peace Officer.
• Prior training/experience/certification in use of firearms and other police issued weapons/ restraints.
• State ACCESS Level II certification or ability to obtain within first six months of employment.
• Experience with processing police records to include data entry into the Spillman Records Management System.