State of Maryland

A Public Defender Intake Specialist Trainee is the entry level of work determining client eligibility for representation by the Office of the Public Defender and obtaining initial client information for preparation of case files.  Employees in this classification do not supervise other positions.

Employees in this classification receive close supervision from a Public Defender Intake Specialist Supervisor or an administrator.  Work is performed at local public defender offices, jails, detention centers, prisons and the courts of Maryland.

Positions in this classification are evaluated by using the classification job evaluation methodology.  The use of this method involves comparing the assigned duties and responsibilities of a position to the job criteria found in the Nature of Work and Examples of Work sections of the class specification.

The Public Defender Intake Specialist Trainee, Public Defender Intake Specialist I and Public Defender Intake Specialist II are differentiated on the basis of supervisory control exercised by the supervisor over these employees.  The Public Defender Intake Specialist Trainee learns to perform duties under close supervision.  The Public Defender Intake Specialist I performs duties under close supervision at times and under general supervision at other times depending upon the complexity of the specific duties being performed.  The Public Defender Intake Specialist II performs the full range of duties and responsibilities under general supervision.

Learns to interview persons to obtain personal and financial information necessary to determine eligibility for representation by the Office of the Public Defender;

Learns to explain and respond to inquiries from clients regarding eligibility requirements, services of the Office of the Public Defender and courtroom procedures;

Learns to compute applicants' assets and liabilities to determine financial status;

Learns to determine client eligibility based on the individual's financial and personal circumstances in accordance with the eligibility guidelines;

Learns to complete the client application for representation and initiate the client case file;

Learns to recommend unusual and borderline non-eligible cases for reconsideration by District Public Defender or designee;

Learns to obtain documentation and information necessary for the client case file, such as proof of income, social services award letter, statement of charges and/or violation of probation report, police reports and the court docket schedule;

Learns to interview eligible clients to obtain statements of their version of the alleged offense and to gather information useful for the client's defense, such as names of potential witnesses and names of hospital(s) where client may have been treated;

Learns to identify and refer cases involving special circumstances (i.e., mental health issues, death eligible charges, co-defendants and conflicts) to supervisor;

Learns to review Judicial Information System (JIS), Criminal Justice Information System (CJIS) and ProLaw to determine existence of other pending charges or cases;

Learns to input case file information into ProLaw Case Management System;

May learn to be responsible for preparing dockets for attorneys;

May learn to be responsible for monitoring dockets in assigned courtrooms;

May learn to prepare subpoenas, writs or summonses;

May travel to jails, prisons or other facilities to interview applicants;

Performs other related duties.

Knowledge of interviewing techniques;

Ability to obtain and record factual information;

Ability to apply basic mathematic computations;

Ability to perform data entry of case file information;

Ability to determine client eligibility for legal assistance services;

Ability to create accurate and legible case files;

Ability to communicate effectively with arrested persons, attorneys, law enforcement and court room personnel;

Ability to obtain client and case information from database systems;

Ability to maintain confidentiality of case materials.

Education:   Graduation from an accredited high school or possession of a high school equivalency certificate.

Experience: None.

Note: Additional experience interviewing persons for the purpose of obtaining background or financial information may be substituted on a year-for-year basis for the required education.

Class specifications are broad descriptions covering groups of positions used by various State departments and agencies. Position descriptions maintained by the using department or agency specifically address the essential job functions of each position.

This is a Skilled Service classification in the State Personnel Management System.  All positions in this classification are Skilled Service positions.  Some positions in Skilled Service classifications may be designated Special Appointment in accordance with the State Personnel and Pensions Article, Section 6-405, Annotated Code of Maryland.

This classification is not assigned to a bargaining unit, as indicated by the designation of S (Supervisor), M (Manager), T (Agency Head), U (Board or Commission Member), W (Student), X (Used by Agency or Excluded by Executive Order), or Z (Confidential).  As provided by State Personnel and Pensions Article, Section 3-102, special appointment, temporary, contractual, supervisory, managerial and confidential employees are excluded collective bargaining.  Additionally, certain executive branch agencies are exempt from collective bargaining and all positions in those agencies are excluded from collective bargaining.

Employees in this classification are eligible to receive overtime compensation.  An employee who works more than the normal workweek is entitled to be compensated for that overtime, as provided by the State Personnel and Pensions Article, Section 8-305.

This classification is one level in a Non-Competitive Promotion (NCP) series.  NCP promotions are promotions by which employees may advance in grade and class level from trainee to full performance level in a classification series.  In order to be non-competitively promoted to the next level in a NCP series, an employee must: 1) perform the main purpose of the class, as defined by the Nature of Work section of the class specification; 2) receive the type of supervision defined in the class specification and 3) meet the minimum qualifications of the classification.