Alabama Northern Probation and Pretrial Services - U.S. Probation Officer

Position Overview

U.S. Probation and Pretrial Services for the Northern District of Alabama, headquartered in Birmingham with divisional offices in Anniston, Huntsville, and Tuscaloosa, is accepting applications for a Drug & Alcohol Treatment Specialist. By statute, the probation and pretrial services officer (officer) serves in a judiciary law enforcement position and assists in the administration of justice. The officer promotes community safety, gathers information, supervises offenders/defendants, interacts with collateral agencies, prepares reports, conducts investigations, and presents recommendations to the court. Officer specialists manage a caseload that includes a significant proportion of offenders/defendants of a specialized type and serve as local experts on cases of this type. The Drug & Alcohol Treatment Specialist is responsible for matters relating to the effective supervision of pretrial services clients, probationers, supervised releasees, and/or parolees who require involvement in a drug aftercare program, treatment, and/or testing. Officer specialists may guide the work of probation/pretrial services officer assistants and other staff.

Representative Duties

• Perform investigative and supervision responsibilities for offenders/defendants in both general and high-risk/specialized cases which include offenders/defendants who are identified as having drug and/or alcohol issues. Conduct investigations, prepare reports, and make recommendations for the court in general, high-risk, and/or specialized cases by interviewing offenders/defendants and their families and collecting background data from various sources. An integral part of this process is the interpretation and application of policies and procedures, statutes, Federal Rules of Criminal Procedures, and may include U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Monographs, and relevant case law in the area of specialization.
• Serve as a resource and expert to the court, line officers, and staff in drug and alcohol cases. Guide, advise, train, and make recommendations to other officers, the court, and other individuals in cases involving area of specialization. Assist in developing policies and proposals to provide needed services. Train line officers on identification and treatment of offenders/defendants with drug and alcohol issues.
• Participate in on-going training and educational opportunities to further develop and/or enhance techniques and skills relating to investigation and supervision practices of offenders/defendants in area of specialization. Provide management and staff with ongoing updates related to changes with this offender/defendant population, and with procedural matters related to aftercare.
• Track developments in the law, and update staff and the court. Enforce court-ordered supervision components and implement supervision strategies. Maintain personal contact with defendants and offenders through office and community contacts and by telephone. Investigate employment, sources of income, lifestyle, and associates to assess risk and compliance. Address substance abuse, mental health, domestic violence, and similar problems and implement the necessary treatment or violation proceedings, through assessment, monitoring, and counseling.
• Investigate and analyze financial documents and activities and take appropriate action. Interview victim(s) and provide victim impact statements to the court. Ensure compliance with Mandatory Victims Restitution Act. Responsible for enforcement of location monitoring conditions ordered by the court, and in some districts may perform location monitoring reintegration on behalf of the Bureau of Prisons.
• Analyze and resolve disputed issues involving offenders/defendants and present unresolved issues to the court for resolution. Assess offenders’/defendants’ level of risk and develop a blend of risk management strategies for controlling and correcting risk.
• Determine and evaluate on an ongoing basis the available resources throughout the district in regard to alcohol and drug aftercare. Secure and contract aftercare services for offenders/defendants while adhering to procurement and contracting guidelines and requirements. Maintain regular contact with contract providers to ensure compliance with contractual agreements. Ensure regularly scheduled meetings to assess offender/defendant progress. Monitor the accurate submission of billing documents from the providers to ensure the appropriate disbursement of funds. Provide contracting and procurement services related to this position.
• Communicate with other organizations and persons (such as the U.S. Parole Commission, Bureau of Prisons, law enforcement, treatment agencies, and attorneys) concerning offenders’/defendants’ behavior and conditions of supervision. Identify and investigate violations and implement appropriate alternatives and sanctions. Report violations of the conditions of supervision to the appropriate authorities. Prepare written reports of violation matters and make recommendations for disposition. Testify at court or parole hearings. Conduct Parole Commission preliminary interviews. Guide the work of staff providing administrative and technical assistance to officers.
• Provide proposals/recommendations for updates or amendments to conditions of supervision for this special offender population.
• Schedule and conduct drug use detection tests and DNA collection of offenders/defendants, following established procedures and protocols. Maintain paper and computerized records of test results. Maintain chain of custody of urinalysis testing materials.
• Respond to judicial officer’s request for information and advice. Testify in court as to the basis for factual findings and (if warranted) guideline applications. Serve as a resource to the court. Maintain detailed written records of case activity. May conduct surveillance and/or search and seizure at the direction of the court.
• Participate in the administrative planning of specialized caseloads. Provide advice, consultation, and program vision and direction and make proposals to the Chief U.S. Probation Officer.

Qualifications

All officer positions require completion of a bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university in a field of academic study which provides evidence of the capacity to understand and apply the legal requirements and human relations skills involved in the position.

In addition to meeting the education requirement, applicants must also have three years of specialized experience, including at least one year as a probation/pretrial services officer in the U.S. Courts. Specialized experience is progressively responsible experience, gained after completion of a bachelor’s degree, in such fields as probation, pretrial services, parole, corrections, criminal investigations, or work in substance/addiction treatment, public administration, human relations, social work, psychology, or mental health. Experience as a police, custodial, or security officer, other than criminal investigative experience, is not creditable.

Maximum Entry Age and Medical Requirements

Applicants age 37 or over, who have previous federal law enforcement experience in the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) or Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS), and who have either a subsequent break in service or intervening service in a non-law enforcement officer position, the maximum entry age is increased by adding the number of years of previous law enforcement experience to 37.

Officers must effectively deal with physical attacks and are subject to moderate to arduous physical exertion, applicants must be physically capable. The medical requirements and essential job functions derived from the medical guidelines for officers are available for public review at https://www.uscourts.gov under Officer and Officer Assistant Medical Requirements. 

Conditions of Employment

• Applicants must be a U.S. citizen.
• Work is performed in an office setting and, in the community, and may be subject to variable hours, including nights and weekends. Work requires regular contact with persons who have violent backgrounds. These contacts may be made in both generally controlled office settings as well as in field situations (such as uncontrolled and unsafe neighborhoods/environments where illegal activities and violence may occur). Travel is required.
• Prior to appointment, the selectee considered for this position will undergo a drug screening. Upon successful completion of the drug screening, the selectee may then be appointed provisionally, pending a favorable suitability determination by the court.
• In addition, as a condition of employment, incumbent will be subject to ongoing random drug screening, updated background investigations every five years and, as deemed necessary by management for reasonable cause, may be subject to subsequent fitness-for-duty evaluations.
• All court employees are EXCEPTED appointments. Federal Civil Service classifications and regulations do not apply.
• Employees are required to use Electronic Fund Transfer (EFT) for direct deposit of pay.

Benefits

Federal benefits include paid vacation and sick leave, 11 holidays, health, life, dental, and vision insurance, flexible spending accounts for health and dependent care, periodic salary increases, retirement benefits, Thrift Savings Plan, etc. For more information about benefits, visit: https://www.uscourts.gov/careers/benefits.

How to Apply

To be considered for this position, applicants are required to provide the following:

• Letter of interest, outlining experience as it relates to this position,
• Current resume,
• Three professional references (name, address, and telephone number),
• Application for Judicial Branch Employment (Form AO-78),
• College transcript(s) (an unofficial copy is acceptable), and
• Signed copies of the two most recent performance evaluations (if not applicable, include an explanation in your letter of interest).

To submit your application:

1. Combine the documents above in order into single PDF,
2. Save the single document by your Last Name, First Name (i.e., Smith, Mary),
3. On the subject line of the email, enter 2026-01  Drug & Alcohol Treatment Specialist – Preferred duty station(s) (i.e., 2026-01 Drug & Alcohol Treatment Specialist – Birmingham and Tuscaloosa, 2026-01 Drug & Alcohol Treatment Specialist – All), and
4. Email the complete packet to resumes@alnp.uscourts.gov one time.

Multiple submissions will not be considered.  Applicants who do not follow instructions may not be considered. Due to the volume of applicants, we will only communicate with those individuals who are selected for an interview and only applicants who are interviewed will receive a response regarding their application status. Please no phone calls. Travel and relocation expenses are not reimbursable.

The U.S. Probation and Pretrial Services Office reserves the right to modify the conditions of this announce, withdraw the announcement, fill the position at any time before the closing date, or fill more than one position from this announcement, any of which may occur without notice to applicants. If a subsequent vacancy of the same position becomes available within a reasonable time of the original announcement, the Chief U.S. Probation Officer may elect to select a candidate from the original qualified applicant pool.

THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER.

This position is not covered under the Fair Chance to Compete (FCA) and requires you to complete the optional background information on the AO-78. The selectee for this position is subject to a criminal record check and satisfactory adjudication by the employing office to be eligible for employment. Due to the sensitivity level of this position, candidates may be asked about their criminal history prior to receiving a tentative offer of employment. Candidates completing the AO-78 must complete questions 18-20 regarding their criminal history. Criminal history is not in itself disqualifying. All available information, past and present, favorable and unfavorable, about the reliability and trustworthiness of an individual will be considered when making an employment suitability determination. Providing false and/or misleading information may be grounds for removal from the application and selection process, as well as disciplinary action if discovered after an individual’s date of hire.