JOB TITLE: PAROLE STAFF TECHNICIAN 2

JOB CODE: 46281

SERIES NATURE OF WORK: The Parole Staff Technician job series describes work in the analysis, interpretation, and implementation of Board actions.

DEFINITION: This is advanced technical staff work involving the analysis and processing of Parole Board actions in the central office of the Board of Probation and Parole.

An employee in this job is responsible for analyzing, making recommendations, and coordinating the implementation of Board actions including the transfer of offender supervision, and the recomputation of offender sentences and parole dates resulting from parole violations. Work includes recommending modifications of Board actions to Parole Managers and Board Members; ensuring that Board actions are prepared and issued in compliance with Board policies and procedures, related laws, court orders, and other requirements prior to implementation; and interpreting Board actions and related policies and procedures to a wide variety of persons, such as judges, corrections officials, and inmates. Work is performed independently under the general supervision of a Parole Manager or technical supervisor who assists in the analysis of difficult case situations.

   DISTINGUISHING CHARACTERISTICS:

     Work is differentiated from the lower level by the responsibility for one of the following:

          • Work in the Interstate Parole Services or Interstate Probation Services Divisions involves analyzing and processing incoming and outgoing requests for interstate transfer of parole or probation cases to ensure offenders meet eligibility requirements and to determine if incoming requests coincide with the Board’s interests; notifying originating states of parole violations by offenders and recommending and coordinating appropriate actions; and reviewing offender probation violations and supervision history and preparing a recommended course of action to the sentencing judge.

          • Work in the Grants, Standards, and Court Services Division involves analyzing and processing requests for offender supervision submitted by county probation departments within Pennsylvania to ensure offenders meet eligibility requirements; verifying that sentences given by judges are consistent with statutes; and notifying county probation staff of illegal sentences.

          • Work in the Case Analysis Division, Violator Unit, involves analyzing offender case documentation to determine the effect parole violations will have on an offender’s current sentence; independently recomputing offenders’ sentences; and preparing and processing Board actions where offenders are incarcerated due to a parole violation.

EXAMPLES OF WORK: (NOTE: The examples of work are representative of the work, but every position classified to this job may not perform all examples of work listed. Conversely, this is not an all-inclusive list of work examples.):

• Analyzes requests for the interstate transfer of parole and probation cases for compliance with the rules of the Interstate Commission for Adult Offender Supervision (ICAOS), the Interstate Compact Agreement, and Board policies, and determines if the requests should be accepted or rejected.

• Analyzes interstate pre-transfer and pre-parole court orders and case material to determine proper period of probation/parole supervision.

• Analyzes requests for supervision from Pennsylvania county probation departments on special probation/parole cases for compliance with acceptance criteria and determines if the requests should be accepted or rejected.

• References the Pennsylvania Crimes Code to determine grading of offenses and to verify that sentences are consistent with statutes.

• Analyzes case reports and other documents received from other states on Pennsylvania parolees who have absconded or are in convicted or unconvicted violator status, summarizes the case, and prepares a recommended course of action to a Parole Manager.

• Prepares and issues documents to arresting agencies in other states, such as Board detainers and Governor’s warrants that allow for arrest, detention, and extradition of parole violators.

• Processes recommitment actions taken by the Board by evaluating offender case information including violation hearing reports, arrest reports, and court documents for accuracy, completeness, and to determine the effect the violations will have on the offender’s current sentence and the feasibility of a final Board action.

• Discusses case records, offender activity, and actions by officials of various criminal justice agencies with parole agents, the Department of Corrections, and prison staff in other jurisdictions to obtain details or to clarify information which is critical to the recomputation of sentences for parole violations.

• Recomputes sentences, including parole dates and maximum dates, resulting from parole violations by determining the appropriate sequence of sentences to be served, reviewing rationale for going outside the prescribed range for a particular offense, and properly applying credits and deductions of time within a sentence including back time owed.

• Summarizes case information orally or in writing to Parole Managers and Board Members to advise of inconsistencies, and to recommend changes in wording of Board actions.

• Communicates orally and in writing with field staff, attorneys, judges, Department of Corrections personnel, inmates, families of inmates, and others in order to answer questions about Board recommitment actions, policies, and procedures.

• Supervises clerical staff responsible for data entry of offender sentence information and the preparation and tracking of correspondence to and from judges and district attorneys.

• Identifies discrepancies in sentence calculations and communicates with staff in the Department of Corrections to obtain resolution.

• Performs related work as required.

ENTRY LEVEL KNOWLEDGES, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES:

• Knowledge of the principles and objectives of the criminal justice system.

• Knowledge of the general methods used to compute sentences of criminal offenders.

• Knowledge of standard office practices and procedures.

• Ability to interpret policies, procedures, and legal precedents relating to the sentencing and paroling of criminal offenders.

• Ability to analyze and interpret court orders, offender case histories, and offender sentences.

• Ability to operate a personal computer and related software.

• Ability to perform basic mathematical calculations, such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.

• Ability to communicate effectively orally.

• Ability to communicate effectively in writing.

• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships.

MINIMUM EXPERIENCE AND TRAINING: (NOTE: Based on the Entry Level Knowledges, Skills, and Abilities):

• One year as a Parole Staff Technician 1;

or

• Four years of clerical experience that included one year in the interpretation and analysis of sentences and case information of criminal offenders;

or

• An equivalent combination of experience and training that included one year in the interpretation and analysis of sentences and case information of criminal offenders.

SPECIAL REQUIREMENT:

• Certain employees in this job must obtain Commonwealth Law Enforcement Assistance Network (CLEAN) certification within three months of employment and maintain this certification for the duration of employment in this job.