DEPUTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY II

Job Description:

DEPUTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY II

Description

Position/Program Information

LOS ANGELES COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY'S OFFICE

TYPE OF RECRUITMENT

Open Competitive Job Opportunity

EXAM NUMBER

A9272G

APPLICATION FILING PERIOD
February 18, 2025, at 8:00 a.m. (PT) through February 25, 2025, BEFORE 5:00 p.m. (PT)

With more than 10 million residents, Los Angeles County is the most populous county in the nation. As the largest employer in Southern California, over 112,000 employees in more than 36 departments provide vital public services as diverse as law enforcement, property assessment, public health protection, water conservation, cultural activities and many more.

The Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office (LADA) is the largest prosecutorial office in the nation. Our jurisdiction spans 4,083 miles, stretching from the Antelope Valley to Long Beach, and from Pomona to Malibu. LADA is dedicated to protecting and serving our community and safeguarding the rights of crime victims and the accused alike through an unrelenting pursuit of justice.

As a member of our Office, you will be joining a team that proudly represents the people of the State of California. LADA seeks justice for all of our diverse communities by reflecting the highest standards of fairness, impartiality, and integrity. Incoming Deputy District Attorneys will receive ongoing support and training from some of the most elite trial prosecutors in the nation. Become a champion for justice with LADA.

What does a Deputy District Attorney II do?
The Deputy District Attorney II will perform legal work of average complexity required in the prosecution of criminal cases. Positions allocable to this class are characterized by the performance of the legal tasks involved in prosecuting criminal actions including a wide variety of misdemeanor cases and moderately complex felony cases for the District Attorney. These complex cases may include challenging legal and/or factual issues and may involve numerous defendants.

Check Out Our Outstanding Benefits! CLICK HERE to see a list of employee benefits!

Essential Job Functions

• Prepares and prosecutes the more complex misdemeanor cases taken to trial.
• Prepares and prosecutes felony cases of moderate complexity in a department of the Superior Court.
• Utilizes computer based legal research systems and office technology in the preparation of cases.
• Prepares and conducts complex preliminary hearings.
• Reviews and makes decisions as to matters presented for filing consideration, which may include the following responsibilities: the careful reading of investigative reports; questioning law enforcement personnel; determining whether a crime was committed by an identified suspect, which may also involve an interpretation of applicable statutes and/or case law; reviewing and applying available criminal histories; recommending a bail setting; and preparing a statement of facts.
• Conducts plea negotiations with defense attorneys or self-represented defendants.
• Confers with witnesses, law enforcement officers, self-represented defendants, defense attorneys, and other interested parties.
• Files, prepares and presents cases against minors in juvenile court.
• Leads law clerks in the presentation of preliminary hearings as needed.

Requirements

REQUIREMENTS TO QUALIFY:
Three (3) years of criminal trial experience as a full-time trial attorney in a City, County, State or Federal prosecuting agency.

LICENSE:
Admission to practice law in California.
A valid California Class C Driver License or the ability to utilize an alternative method of transportation when needed to carry out job-related essential functions.

All Applicants must be admitted to the California State Bar Association to practice law in the State of California. Types of acceptable documents include:

• A legible copy (photocopy or PDF format) of an active California State Bar Card (CSBC). The CSBC must indicate the current year (2024). If the watermark of the current year is not visible, your application will be rejected -OR-
• If you recently passed the bar and do not have a bar card, a legible copy (photocopy or PDF format) of a letter from the California State Bar Association that clearly states that you have achieved a passing score on the California State Bar Examination -AND- that you have satisfied ALL of the requirements for admission to practice law at the time of filing. All correspondence must be on the California State Bar letterhead.
• Congratulation letters that indicate you have NOT satisfied ALL of the requirements for admission to practice law will not be accepted. Examples of these are:

Records indicate you submitted or need to submit an Application for Determination of Moral Character (indicates Application for Determination of Moral Character has not been completed). Records indicate that you have not taken the Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination (MPRE); -OR- Records indicate that you have outstanding fees.

• Law graduates with provisional licenses are not eligible to participate in this examination.

All supporting documentation must be submitted along with your application or via email to exams@da.lacounty.gov within seven (7) calendar days from the last day of filing. Failure to submit within seven (7) calendar days from the last day of the application submission, will disqualify you from participating in this examination. We do not accept password-protected documents. Ensure documents are unlocked before attaching to your application or sending to the exam analyst.
No withholds will be allowed for this examination. Required experience must be fully met and indicated on the application at the time of filing.

PHYSICAL CLASS:
Physical Class II - Light: This class includes administrative and clerical positions requiring light physical effort that may include occasional light lifting to a 10-pound limit and some bending, stooping, or squatting. Considerable ambulation may be involved.

Additional Information

OUR ASSESSMENT PROCESS:
Once we have determined that you meet the requirements, we will evaluate your fitness for this opportunity using three (3) assessments:

PART I: Multiple Choice and/or Simulation Assessments weighted at 40% assessing:

• Professional Potential
• Achievement
• Maintains Good Working Relationships
• Analyzes Information
• Learns Quickly
• Generates New Ideas
• Uses Time Efficiently
• Works to High Quality Standards
• Adapts to Change
• Copes with Uncertainty
• Willingness to Learn
• Responsibility
• Verbal Ability
• Deductive Reasoning

APPLICANTS MUST MEET THE REQUIREMENTS AND ACHIEVE A PASSING SCORE OF 70% OR HIGHER ON PART I IN ORDER TO MOVE TO PART II.

THESE ASSESSMENTS FALL UNDER CIVIL SERVICE RULE 7.19, WHICH MEANS YOU ARE NOT ABLE TO REVIEW THE QUESTIONS OR YOUR RESPONSES ONCE YOU HAVE COMPLETED THE ASSESSMENTS.

PART II: Structured Interview weighted at 40% assessing:

• Ethics and Integrity
• Serving the Public Interest
• Assisting Victims of Crime
• Cultural Sensitivity
• Oral Communication
• Knowledge of Ethics and Discovery Obligations
• Knowledge of Evidence Code

APPLICANTS MUST MEET THE REQUIREMENTS AND ACHIEVE A PASSING SCORE OF 70% OR HIGHER ON PART II IN ORDER TO MOVE TO PART III.

PART III: Evaluation of Training & Experience weighted at 20% assessing:

• Experience as a lead attorney with misdemeanor jury trials
• Experience as a lead attorney with felony jury trials
• Experience as a lead prosecuting attorney
• Experience as a lead attorney with juvenile adjudication hearings
• Experience litigating or responding to various types of motions
• Experience with various types of legal research and data collection methods

APPLICANTS MUST MEET THE REQUIREMENTS AND ACHIEVE A PASSING SCORE OF 70% OR HIGHER ON PART I, PART II AND PART III IN ORDER TO BE PLACED ON THE ELIGIBLE LIST.

TRANSFER OF TEST COMPONENTS:

• Applicants who have taken identical components recently for other exams may have their responses automatically transferred to this examination.
• This examination contains test components that may be used in the future for new examinations and your test responses may be transferred.

Please add the below email addresses to your email address book and list of approved senders to prevent email notifications from being filtered as spam/junk/clutter mail.

• exams@da.lacounty.gov
• info@governmentjobs.com
• talentcentral@shl.com
• noreply@proctoru.com
• donot-reply@amcatmail.com

Scores cannot be given over the telephone.
TEST PREPARATION:
Study guides and other test preparation resources are available to help candidates prepare for employment tests. While the guides will help you prepare for the test, we advise you to review all related materials that you deem necessary.

• An interactive, Online Test Preparation System for taking practice tests may be accessed on the Department of Human Resources website at
  http://hr.lacounty.gov/ . Please click on "Find A Job" and then "Job Search Toolkit." Test preparation information is located under the "Employment Test Assistance" section.
  
• Additional online practice tests are available at https://www.shldirect.com/en-us/practice-tests .

ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION:
The names of candidates receiving a passing score in the examination will be placed on the eligible list for a period of six (6) months from the date the list is created.

SPECIAL REQUIREMENT INFORMATION:
QUALIFYING BACKGROUND CHECK
Before a final appointment is made to this position, you will be required to complete and pass a thorough background investigation including a Live scan.

Examples of disqualifying factors are:

• Any criminal charges or convictions
• Job related misdemeanor convictions
• Certain serious traffic convictions or patterns of traffic violations such as three (3) moving violations in one year; failure to appear; at-fault accidents; applicant placed on a three (3) year probation
• Poor credit history
• Poor employment history
• Substance abuse
• Driving under the influence

VACANCY INFORMATION:
The resulting eligible list will be used to fill vacancies throughout the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office.

AVAILABLE SHIFT:
Deputy District Attorneys are rotated through a variety of developmental assignments to prepare the attorney to handle cases of increasing difficulty; incumbents may be assigned to work in any area of Los Angeles County and on any shift (evenings, nights, and weekends).

APPLICATION AND FILING INFORMATION:
Applications must be filed online only. We must receive your application before 5:00 p.m., PT, on the last day of filing. Applications submitted by U.S. mail, fax, or in person will not be accepted. Apply online by clicking on the "Apply" green button at the top right of this posting. You can also track the status of your application using this website.

Plan to submit your online application well in advance of the February 25, 2025, BEFORE 5:00 p.m. (PT) deadline as you may be required to verify your email address. This only needs to be done once per email address, and if you already have a job seeker account on governmentjobs.com/careers/lacounty, you can verify at any time by logging in and following the prompts. This is to enhance the security of your online application and to ensure you do not enter an incorrect email address.

Fill out your application completely. The acceptance of your application depends on whether you have clearly shown that you meet the Requirements to Qualify as listed on this job posting. Provide any relevant job experience in the spaces provided so we can evaluate your qualifications for the job. For each job held, give the name and address of your employer, your job title, beginning and ending dates, number of hours worked per week, and description of work performed. If your application is incomplete, it will be rejected.

IMPORTANT:
Please note that all information included in the application materials is subject to verification at any point during the examination and hiring process, including after an appointment has been made. Falsification of any information may result in disqualification or rescission of appointment. Utilizing verbiage from the Class Specification and Minimum Requirements serving as your description of duties will not be sufficient to demonstrate that you meet the requirements. Doing so may result in an incomplete application and you may be disqualified.

ANTI-RACISM, DIVERSITY, AND INCLUSION (ARDI):
The County of Los Angeles recognizes and affirms that all people are created equal and are entitled to all rights afforded by the Constitution of the United States. We are committed to promoting Anti-racism, Diversity, and Inclusion efforts to address the inequalities and disparities amongst race. We support the ARDI Strategic Plan and its goals by improving equality, diversity, and inclusion in recruitment, selection, and employment practices.

SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER:
Please include your Social Security Number for record control purposes. Federal law requires that all employed persons have a Social Security Number.

COMPUTER AND INTERNET ACCESS AT PUBLIC LIBRARIES:
For candidates who may not have regular access to a computer or the internet, applications can be completed on computers at public libraries throughout Los Angeles County.

NO SHARING OF USER ID AND PASSWORD:
All applicants must file their application online using their OWN user ID and password. Using a family member or friend's user ID and password may erase a candidate's original application record.

TESTING ACCOMMODATION:
If you require an accommodation to fairly compete in any part of the assessment process, let us know by contacting the Testing Accommodations Coordinator at exams@da.lacounty.gov. You will be required to complete the Request for Reasonable Accommodation form as well as provide supporting documentation from a qualified professional justifying the requested accommodation(s). The sooner you contact us, the sooner we can respond to your request and keep you moving through the process.

Questions? Please Contact Us:
Department Contact Name: Exams Unit
Department Contact Phone: (213) 257-2700
Department Contact Email: exams@da.lacounty.gov
ADA Coordinator Phone: (213) 257-2700
California Relay Services Phone: (800) 735-2922
Teletype Phone: (800) 735-2929

For detailed information, please click here

Closing Date/Time: 2/25/2025 5:00 PM Pacific

Salary:

$107,652.00 - $161,700.00 Annually