We're Hiring!
COMMUNITY OUTREACH WORKER II P – FAMILY DEFENSEThe Alameda County Public Defender’s Office (ACPDO) seeks a Family Defense Community Outreach Worker with experience with systems impacted parents to serve as part of a newly created Family Defense Team. This grant-funded and project provisional appointment position focuses on supporting Public Defender clients at risk of prolonged or permanent family separation due to the intersection of criminal-legal involvement and child welfare systems.
All inquiries and applicant submissions should be emailed to acpdrecruitment@acgov.org. Please include a cover letter and resume. Deadline to apply is May 1, 2026. Interviews may be conducted on a rolling basis before the deadline, while applications will be accepted until May 1, 2026.
Description
The Family Defense Community Outreach Worker will provide integrated, client-centered advocacy, case management, and resource connection support to ACPDO clients whose contact with the criminal legal system creates risk of child welfare intervention, loss of parent-child contact, or dependency court involvement.
This position is designed to intervene at the earliest stage of possible family separation, ideally before or immediately following arraignment, to prevent unnecessary family separation. The Community Outreach Worker will work in close collaboration with the Family Defense Attorney, deputy public defenders, social workers, and Partners for Justice advocates to mitigate collateral family consequences stemming from arrest, charging decisions, and criminal court protective orders.
The position combines strengths-based and trauma-informed assessment, client-centered case management, linkages to stabilizing services and resources, preventative advocacy and support navigating interactions with child welfare authorities, and support in criminal, family, probate, and dependency courts when necessary.
The Department
The Alameda County Public Defender’s Office provides its clients with comprehensive holistic defense services. Our model of client-centered holistic defense is enhanced by wrap-around services for those subject to criminal, civil commitment, or immigration proceedings. We provide the highest quality of indigent defense by vigorously advocating for the rights of our clients, in pursuit of a fair and unbiased system of justice for all.
The Office is proud to be an equal opportunity employer, and we deeply value the diversity of our staff. We are committed to building and supporting a culturally diverse workplace, and we encourage women, people of color, LGBTQ individuals, veterans, people with disabilities, and people from other underrepresented groups to apply.
The Position
The Family Defense Community Outreach Worker will focus on three primary client categories:
Clients Subject to Criminal Protective Orders or Arraignment Conditions Restricting Parent-Child Contact
• Provide coordinated support in family or probate proceedings when necessary to restore or protect parent-child contact.
• With direction and oversight from the Family Defense Attorney, assist clients in preparing declarations and filings in related family or probate court matters.
• Provide written mitigation reports related to engagement in services for clients for criminal, family and probate court proceedings.
Clients with Child Welfare Investigations or Dependency Proceedings
• Intervene during the critical window between police reporting and CPS investigation.
• Conduct strengths-based and trauma-informed client assessments.
• Assist with safety planning and linkages to stabilizing services.
• Prepare clients for Child and Family Team (CFT) meetings.
• Support and advocate on behalf of clients during CFT meetings.
• Engage with child welfare investigators to advocate for informal or no intervention, or to advocate for relative placement when family separation is inevitable.
• Maintain regular communication with clients.
• Assist clients in case plan development and with overcoming barriers to case plan completion.
• Refer clients with ancillary issues to external resources as needed.
• Obtain progress reports from service providers for court.
Pregnant Clients at High Risk of Child Welfare Intervention
• Help to identify pregnant ACPDO clients at risk of mandated reporting at birth.
• Conduct strengths-based and trauma-informed assessments to determine clients’ risk of child welfare involvement at birth.
• Identify and refer clients to stabilizing services to mitigate risk of child welfare involvement at birth.
• Liaise with medical providers when appropriate to prevent unnecessary child welfare involvement at birth.
• Develop and maintain relationships with trusted community-based providers.
Additional Responsibilities
• Assist Family Defense Attorney in providing ongoing training to ACPDO attorneys and staff on the intersection of criminal courts and custody courts (dependency, family, and probate).
• Assist Family Defense Attorney in developing screening protocols for identifying at-risk families early in criminal cases.
• Participate in interdisciplinary case conferencing.
• Maintain accurate case documentation consistent with grant reporting requirements.
• Serve as liaison between ACPDO and community-based providers related to family defense efforts.
The Ideal Candidate
In addition to meeting minimum qualifications, the ideal candidate will demonstrate:
• Experience working with families impacted by the criminal legal system and/or the child welfare system.
• Strong interest in cross-system advocacy and holistic defense.
• Commitment to racial equity and reducing disparities in family separation.
• Strong written and oral advocacy skills.
• Ability to work collaboratively within an interdisciplinary model.
• Ability to work effectively with a team of other professionals from within the office as well as other agencies.
• Confidence to learn and apply new information quickly, while working independently.
• Effective time management and organizational skills, with the capacity to set priorities, meet deadlines, and shift gears when necessary.
• Strong sense of conflict-resolution skills and ability to maintain a calm demeanor.
• A high degree of personal integrity to maintain confidential and sensitive information.
• Professionalism, courtesy, tact, and empathy.
• Bilingual in Spanish and English is highly desirable but not required.
Minimum Qualifications
EITHER I
Experience:
The equivalent of six (6) months of full-time satisfactory experience in the Community Outreach Worker I in the Alameda County classified service.
OR II
Experience:
The equivalent of two (2) years full-time experience working in a community outreach program performing duties, such as: intake, peer counseling, obtaining personal history, non-clinical assessments, client community health education, program screening, placement, and referral.
Substitution:
The equivalent of an AA degree (60 semester or 90 quarter units) from an accredited college in health services, social science health education or a related field, such as Psychology or Counseling, may be substituted for one (1) year of full-time experience in pattern II above.
License:
Possession of a valid California Driver’s License required.
Preferred Qualifications
Two years of demonstrated commitment to working with systems impacted families.
Demonstrated ability to use and prioritize a holistic, trauma-informed and client-centered approach to community outreach work.
Bilingual Spanish
Salary and Benefits
$34.81 - $41.45 hourly with a 37.5-hour weekly schedule
Alameda County offers a comprehensive and competitive benefits package that affords wide-ranging healthcare options to meet the different needs of a diverse workforce and their families. We also sponsor many different employee discounts, fitness and health screening programs focused on overall well-being. These benefits include but are not limited to*:
For your Health & Well-Being
• Medical – HMO & PPO Plans
• Dental – HMO & PPO Plans
• Vision or Vision Reimbursement
• Share the Savings
• Basic Life Insurance
• Supplemental Life Insurance (with optional dependent coverage for eligible employees)
• County Allowance Credit
• Flexible Spending Accounts - Health FSA, Dependent Care and Adoption Assistance
• Short-Term Disability Insurance
• Long-Term Disability Insurance
• Voluntary Benefits - Accident Insurance, Critical Illness, Hospital Indemnity and Legal Services
• Employee Assistance Program
For your Financial Future
• Deferred Compensation Plan (457 Plan or Roth Plan)
For your Work/Life Balance
• 12 paid holidays
• Floating Holidays
• Vacation and sick leave accrual
• Vacation purchase program
• Catastrophic Sick Leave
• Pet Insurance
• Commuter Benefits Program
• Guaranteed Ride Home
• Employee Wellness Program (e.g. At Work Fitness, Incentive Based Programs, Gym Membership Discounts)
• Employee Discount Program (e.g. theme parks, cell phone, etc.)
• Child Care Resources
• 1stUnited Services Credit Union
*Eligibility is determined by Alameda County and offerings may vary by collective bargaining agreement. This provides a summary of the benefits offered and can be subject to change.
Working for the Alameda County Public Defender's Office
The Public Defender’s practice consists predominantly of litigation and defense of adults and juveniles charged with crimes ranging from misdemeanors to capital murders. The Office also defends individuals subject to involuntary psychiatric commitments and conservatorships. All Public Defender attorneys rotate through the various assignments available in the office.
The Public Defender employs roughly 110 trial attorneys across our six branch offices in Alameda County.
The Alameda County Public Defender's Office is one of the oldest public defense offices in the United States. Our reputation for exceptional legal representation to indigent clients is due to its historically rigorous professional and ethical standards. The Alameda County Public Defender’s Office is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to diversity.
Alameda County is a large, geographically diverse area with a growing population of nearly 1.7 million. The patterns of crime and the community responses to criminal justice issues vary dramatically within the county, which makes Alameda County a fascinating and rewarding place to practice criminal law.
Over the past few years our office has grown to be the preeminent provider of holistic defense in California. Our client-centered practice gives a voice to those whose voices have been silenced by poverty and systems of oppression. We ensure that no one faces the government alone. We protect the wrongfully accused, the homeless, the poor, the unfortunate and the neglected. We fight for those who cannot afford to fight for themselves and we help them navigate a complex and daunting legal system. By fighting for them, we protect the constitutional rights of everyone in our community.
Legal Position Descriptions
Entry Level Attorney Positions
Appointments to all vacant Associate Deputy Public Defender positions are made by the Public Defender from a civil service hiring list prepared after an examination coordinated by the Alameda County Human Resources Department. The HR Department receives applications during an open period of 25 days. Applications for Associate Deputy Public Defender are generally accepted once a year, from mid-November to mid-December following the summer bar exam results.
All Associate Deputy Public Defenders initially work in a branch office where they are assigned cases of increasing difficulty. By the end of the third year most lawyers are assigned their first felony jury trial case load. After demonstrating proficiency in the trial of felony cases, Associate Deputy Public Defenders are promoted to the position of Deputy Public Defender. The Office provides ongoing in-house training for all attorneys; the Alameda County Public Defender is approved as a provider of Minimum Continuing Legal Education (MCLE) by the State Bar of California.
Click here to view the Associate Deputy Public Defender Job Description and to sign up to be notified when the position opens.
Deputy Public Defender Positions
The Deputy Public Defender position is the general litigation attorney position in the Public Defender’s Office. By the assignment of the Public Defender, Deputy Public Defenders are the attorneys for defendants in criminal and juvenile cases, and represent litigants in certain civil proceedings, as appointed to or accepted by the Public Defender. Deputy Public Defenders must be in good standing with the State Bar of California and have a valid California motor vehicle operator’s license, and should have experience in the practice of criminal law and demonstrated competence in the handling of all phases of felony cases, including substantial felony trial experience. Substantial felony trial experience is deemed to include the trial to verdict of at least three felonies for which the possible penalty exceeds seven years.
The Office provides ongoing in-house training for all attorneys; the Alameda County Public Defender is approved as a provider of Minimum Continuing Legal Education (MCLE) by the State Bar of California.
Appointments to all vacant Deputy Public Defender positions are made by the Public Defender from a Civil Service hiring list promulgated after an examination coordinated by the Alameda County Personnel Department.
Click here to view the Deputy Public Defender Job Description and to sign up to be notified when the position opens.
Post-Bar Legal Assistants
Post-Bar Legal Assistants perform legal research and writing, conduct client intake interviews, litigate motions, conduct evidentiary hearings and assist attorneys in case preparation for trial or disposition. All legal assistants are compensated and must be certified under the Rules Governing the Practical Training of Law Students by the State Bar of California or admitted to the State Bar. Applications for post-bar legal assistants are accepted year-round but the recruitment period generally lasts from July to November. All inquiries should be directed to the Public Defender Recruitment Officer at acpdrecruitment@acgov.org. Please include a cover letter, resume and writing sample.
Law Clerk Positions
The Alameda County Public Defender’s Office offers law students the opportunity to gain the traditional experience in research and writing, as well as practical “hands on” experience of assisting Public Defenders in court. In general, law clerks perform legal research and writing, conduct client intake interviews, litigate motions, conduct evidentiary hearings and assist attorneys in case preparation for trial or disposition. All law clerk work is done under the supervision of a senior Public Defender attorney. Law students who are exploring a career in criminal defense work will find their experiences with the Alameda County Public Defender an invaluable step in their career development.
We encourage 1L, 2L, and 3L students to apply and we accept interns on a year-round basis. We encourage law students seeking this position to complete courses in Criminal Procedure and Evidence. For some positions, law students must be eligible for certification under the Rules Governing the Practical Training of Law Students by the State Bar of California. If your school does not provide funding to you, we can provide funding to law clerks working full-time during the summer. While applications are accepted continuously, the bulk are received during On-Campus Interviews in the fall. All inquiries should be directed to the Public Defender Recruitment Officer at acpdrecruitment@acgov.org. Please include a cover letter, resume and writing sample.