Description

What is OII?

In 2021, The Washington state Legislature passed House Bill 1267 to create the Office of Independent Investigations (OII). This is in response to the demand for change from the community over Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) deaths resulting from encounters with law enforcement. The law requires these use of deadly force investigations to be truly independent of the involved law enforcement agency.

OII will define a new approach to investigating use of deadly force incidents, removing conflicts of interest and improving accountability, transparency and the public’s confidence. Doing so will strengthen the relationship between police and the community while building public trust and promoting effective policing.

Position Overview:
All OII staff will help establish and pursue the intent of the OII to foster trust between law enforcement and communities most impacted by police use of force incidents. Thus, in addition to homicide investigation training and training on officer-involved matters, OII staff will also support trust building efforts and be trained in the history of racism in policing, tribal sovereignty, implicit and explicit bias, intercultural competency, a racial equity lens, anti-racism and undoing institutional racism. OII is committed to fostering community relationships and support for impacted families.

As the Forensic Manager you will lead the agency’s Forensic Investigations Unit which coordinates heavily with the Regional Investigations Teams and the Washington State Patrol forensics services. You will plan, direct and coordinate collection, analysis documentation, preservation and reporting of evidence from incident scenes.

Duties

What you’ll do:

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  Coordinate, consult, advise and manage the forensic response, evidence collection and exhibit management of OII investigations.
• Manage all aspects of scene coordination including evidence identification and search, examination, and collection. Provide direction, suggestions, and oversight to the forensic staff assigned to the investigation about OII investigation priorities and requirements.
• Provide advice and recommendations to the Director, Policy Advisor and/or Assistant Director of Investigations in the planning and conduct of forensic investigations including determining the need for response, methodology and scope.
• Conduct immediate assessments of investigation scenes to evaluate presence of physical evidence, location of incident, environmental considerations and witness evidence to establish and undertake key lines of inquiry related to the examination of the scene, security of physical evidence and maximizing evidential opportunities.
• Perform scene examinations and may process exhibits to facilitate forensic examination or techniques to achieve independent and thorough investigations.
• Establish evidence gathering priorities and provide advice to Investigators in relation to locating, identifying, collecting, preserving, labelling, and packaging of physical evidence and preparation of evidence for submission to appropriate laboratories.
• Provide clear direction and recommendations to peers and subordinates, setting goals and expectations, working collaboratively with involved agency staff, OII investigators and Senior Investigators, and Independent Investigation Teams (IIT’s) to coordinate and complete scene examinations, ensuring concurrent investigations of the OII and involved agencies are effectively completed.
• Maintain accurate documentation of all aspects of the scene examination strategy, planning and execution. Ensure all relevant information has been reported to the OII scene commander and that all relevant lines of inquiry have been reviewed, discussed and/or submitted for analysis. Ensure that chain of custody is meticulously maintained and documented.
• Complete reviews of examinations conducted by IIT’s and external forensic contractors to verify all forensic scene examinations are conducted within established protocols and utilizing recognized scientific methodology.
• Attend critical incident scenes and coordinate and manage the response to secure and preserve evidence. Leads Forensic Analysts in the reconstruction of scenes in urban and rural areas over extended periods, where necessary.
• Consult and coordinate with Coroners, Forensic Pathologists, or other forensic specialists to ensure the investigative interests of each agency are met and not compromised.
• Testify in court as a witness to support findings and conclusions.
• Identify and recommend best practices in developing OII responses and actions at critical incident scenes, consistent with crime scene management principles.
• Monitor performance and behaviors of staff to reduce opportunity for bias to affect outcomes. Actively promote the importance of independence and impartiality.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in forensic science, criminology, law, investigations, or a closely related field.*
• Four years’ experience in crime scene management or application of forensic examination techniques in an investigative context.
• Experience providing expert testimony on matters relating to the examinations performed.
• Experience leading staff and operations with proven success as a mentor and leader.
• Knowledge of Washington practices, including laws, policies, and procedures related to criminal law, criminal investigations, and policing.**
• Experience using data and information to assess and understand issues, evaluate options, form conclusions, and make decisions.
• Experience in caseload management by appropriately prioritizing and concurrently servicing multiple, long-term case assignments, integrating many factors into case decisions, and ensuring accurate, high quality service delivery.
• Knowledge of the rules of evidence/chain of custody necessary to protect integrity of evidence gathered during an investigation.

• A combination of relevant education and experience, totaling eight years or above, will be considered in substitution of the educational requirement.

Desired Qualifications

• Seven years’ experience as a lead forensic investigator on crime scenes, including those involving firearms, death, and all manner of trace evidence collection.

Conditions of Employment:

• Per Governor Inslee’s Directive 22-13.1, state employees must be fully vaccinated effective November 4, 2022. Providing proof of being fully vaccinated is a condition of employment and your vaccine status will be verified prior to starting work. Being fully vaccinated means two weeks after you have received the second dose in a two-dose series of a COVID-19 vaccine or a single-dose COVID-19 vaccine authorized for emergency use, licensed or otherwise authorized or approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration or listed for emergency use or otherwise approved by the World Health Organization. Please reach out to the HR Office if you need information on medical or religious accommodation.
• Must abide by Criminal Justice Information Sharing Agreements.
• Candidates will be required to pass a review of their background including a criminal history search and polygraph examination.
• Employees driving on state business must have a current, valid driver’s license.
• Must be able to respond 24/7 state-wide as required as part of an on-call team. Ability to work-on call duty for periods of up to two weeks.
• The OII will require the applicant to consent to a review of all employing agency records documenting prior disciplinary actions or complaints.
• Must be able to testify in court proceedings as needed.
• Employees driving a privately owned vehicle on state business must have liability insurace on the privately-owned vehicle.

Note: If you have an approved exemption with your current agency, you will still be expected to go through the exemption process with OFM by submitting your request through the OFM HR office for appropriate processing and approval.

Supplemental Information

Application Process
How to Apply

Interested? We would love to hear from you. Click “Apply” at the top of this page to start your application (you can save the application and come back to it, if needed). Please include the following:

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  A letter of interest that describes your specific qualifications.
• A current resume that details your applicable experience and education.
• A list of at least three professional references with current telephone numbers.

We will directly contact the top candidates to interview for this position. Because we base our selection on the information you provide, it is in your best interest to identify the knowledge, skills and abilities that address the required and desirable qualifications we described above.

Questions?

For questions about this recruitment or to request reasonable accommodation in the application process, please email William Penzo at TalentAcquisition@ofm.wa.gov. For TTY service, please call the Washington Relay Service at 7-1-1 or 1-800-833-6388.

The Office of Independent Investigations is an equal opportunity employer. We strive to create a working environment that includes and respects cultural, racial, ethnic, sexual orientation and gender identity diversity. Women, racial and ethnic minorities, persons of disability, persons over 40 years of age, and disabled and Vietnam-era veterans are encouraged to apply. If you need accommodations or help in the application process, or who wish to receive this job announcement in an alternative format, you may call 360-725-0158 or dial 711 to reach the Telecommunications Device for the Deaf system.