Forensic Interviewer - Family Justice Center - Spanish/English Bilingual Skills Required

Description

The San Mateo County Family Justice Center is seeking highly qualified candidates for the position of Forensic Interviewer - Spanish/English Bilingual Skills Required.

The San Mateo County Family Justice Center is a newly created one-stop holistic service and support center for families and survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, and other forms of abuse. The mission of the Center is to support survivors and their families by creating a single destination to receive crucial services and support.

A division of the County of San Mateo's District Attorney's Office, the Family Justice Center (Center) is designed to be a County-run multi-agency, multi-disciplinary service center where both public and private partner agencies will assign staff on a full-time or part-time basis to provide services from one location. The Center's focus is to reduce the number of times survivors tell their story, reducing the number of places they must go for help, and through active collaboration with community-based organizations, increasing the quality of services and support they receive.

The Position

The work of the Forensic Interviewer is an integral part of the services the Center offers. Under the general direction of the Director of the Family Justice Center, the Forensic Interviewer conducts neutral, legally sound, developmentally and culturally appropriate, and trauma-informed interviews of children, teens, and vulnerable adults who are victims or witnesses to child abuse or neglect, violence, exploitation, or other crimes referred to San Mateo County's Child Advocacy Center (CAC).

Using nationally recognized protocols, the Forensic Interviewer gathers accurate and developmentally appropriate information while minimizing re-traumatization. Interviews are structured to support criminal investigations and may be used as evidence in court.

Working as part of a multidisciplinary team (MDT), the Forensic Interviewer collaborates closely with law enforcement, child protective services, prosecutors, and advocates to ensure a coordinated, victim-centered response. The Forensic Interviewer is also responsible for thorough documentation and may provide expert testimony in legal proceedings. The role is essential in bridging the needs of the justice system with the safety and well-being of victims. In addition to conducting interviews, the Forensic Interviewer will also attend regular peer reviews, monthly case reviews, and other meetings and trainings as required.

This is an opportunity for a committed public servant with extensive experience to support some of the County's most vulnerable residents. This position requires bilingual proficiency in English and Spanish.

The Ideal Candidate

In addition to having demonstrated experience in conducting forensic interviews with victims of crime, the ideal candidate will have:

• A strong desire to help people.
• Experience working in a mental health setting.
• The Ability to listen with empathy to traumatic experiences and maintain balance and objectivity.
• Demonstrated success with self-care while providing services.
• Demonstrated success working independently and as part of a team.
• Resourcefulness and the ability to "think on their feet" and respond effectively in the moment.

Examples Of Duties

What You Will Do

The Forensic Interviewer will have the opportunity and responsibility to:

• Conduct forensic interviews, in both English and Spanish with children and adolescents in accordance with San Mateo County protocols.
• Conduct forensic interviews, in both English and Spanish, with adult victims or witnesses, including adults with special needs.
• Provide information, crisis intervention, resource referrals and support to children and adolescents and their non-offending family members, as needed, and in collaboration with partner agency personnel.
• Participate regularly in Forensic Interviewer peer review and skills-based continuing education in forensic interviewing.
• Participate in monthly multidisciplinary team (MDT) meetings and case reviews.
• Work collaboratively with partner agencies personnel with case tracking and data collection.
• Work on MDT projects and committees, as necessary.
• Testify in criminal and dependency court as a percipient witness for cases in which they conducted an interview
• Assist in the delivery of educational presentations, upon request.
• Attend forensic interviewer peer review a minimum of four times per year
• Perform related duties as assigned.

Qualifications

Who Thrives Here
The Family Justice Center is recruiting a Forensic Interviewer who can provide both the technical and relationship-driven dimensions of the Center. Candidates may have more experience in some areas than others, but successful hires will have at least five years of experience working in a multi-disciplinary environment with Child Protective Services, Law Enforcement, or Human or Social Services and demonstrate these core competencies:

Technical Knowledge

• Principles, practices, and techniques of forensic interviewing.
• Current trends in investigations related to dependency, child abuse and neglect, domestic violence, sexual assault, and child and elder abuse laws.
• Child development and dynamics of trauma and abuse.
• Criminal justice and dependency systems.
• Awareness of current literature, research, case law, trends, and practice developments in the field of child forensic interviewing.

Interpersonal Relations with the Clients of the Center

• Ability to build rapport with and gain cooperation from emotional and reticent individuals coming from a variety of ethnic and socio-economic groups.
• Experience interviewing victim's families and other individuals to obtain information on a variety of complex and sensitive subjects.
• Knowledge of crisis intervention methodologies to assist victims, witnesses, and their families.

Collaboration with the Multidisciplinary Team and Community Partners and Stakeholders

• Ability to work effectively with a multidisciplinary team and with clients across cultures and developmental abilities.

Professional Decorum

• Ability to exercise initiative and good judgment in decision-making and in solving problems, including problems of a sensitive or political nature.
• Ability to maintain professionalism and composure in high-pressure or crisis situations.

Professional Development

• Completion of an NCA-approved Child Forensic Interview Training course upon hire or within six months of hire.
• Obtain a minimum of 8 hours of continuing education in forensic interviewing every two years in accordance with National Children's Alliance standards and meet or exceed NCA Accreditation requirements.

Education and Experience:

Any combination of training and experience that would likely provide the required knowledge, skills, and abilities is qualifying. A typical way to qualify is:

• Some college coursework in psychology, counseling, social work, criminal justice or other closely related field; and five (5) years of experience working in a multi-disciplinary environment with Child Protective Services, Law Enforcement, and Human or Social Services; or
• Possession of a bachelor's degree in social sciences with an emphasis in psychology, counseling, social work, criminal justice or other related field; and three (3) years of experience working in a multi-disciplinary environment with Child Protective Services, Law Enforcement, and Human or Social Services.
• Substitution : Possession of a master's degree in social sciences with an emphasis in psychology, counseling, social work, criminal justice or other related field; and one (1) year of experience in a multi-disciplinary environment with Child Protective Services, Law Enforcement, and Human or Social Services.

Application/Examination

This is an Open and Promotional recruitment. Anyone may apply. Current County of San Mateo employees with at least six months (1040 hours) of continuous service in classified regular, probationary, extra-help, or limited term positions prior to the final filing date will receive five points added to their final passing score on the examination.

The examination process will consist of an Application Screening (weight: pass/fail), and a Panel Interview (weight: 100%), which may include the evaluation of a brief writing exercise given immediately preceding the interview. Applicants must successfully pass the Application Screening to move forward to the interview. Candidates must successfully pass the interview to be placed on the hiring (eligible) list.

Depending on the number of applicants, an application appraisal of education and experience may be used in place of other examinations, or further evaluation of work experience may be conducted to group applicants by level of qualification. All applicants who meet the minimum qualifications are not guaranteed advancement through any subsequent phase of the examination. All examinations will be given in San Mateo County, California, and applicants must participate at their own expense. Interviews may be conducted virtually using MS Teams.

IMPORTANT: Applications for this position will only be accepted online. If you are currently on the County's website, you may click the "Apply" button. If you are not on the County's website, please go to https://jobs.smcgov.orgto apply. Please complete the County of San Mateo Employment Application for and provide responses to the items in the Supplemental Questionnaire.

Tentative Recruitment Schedule

Final Filing Date: February 17, 2026, at 11:59 PM

Application Screening (tentative): February 24-26, 2026

Panel Interviews (tentative): March 11 and/or March 12, 2026

San Mateo County

San Mateo County is centrally located between San Francisco, San Jose, and the East Bay. With over 750,000 residents, San Mateo is one of the largest and most diverse counties in California and serves a multitude of culturally, ethnically, and linguistically diverse communities.

The County of San Mateo, as an employer, is committed to advancing equity to ensure that all employees are welcomed in a safe and inclusive environment. The County seeks to hire, support, and retain employees who reflect our diverse community. We encourage applicants with diverse backgrounds and lived experiences to apply. Eighty percent of employees surveyed stated that they would recommend the County as a great place to work.

The County of San Mateo is an equal opportunity employer committed to fostering diversity, equity, and inclusion at all levels.

Analyst: Chet Overstreet (01272026) (Forensic Interviewer - G099)

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• County of San Mateo Human Resources Department

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