Juvenile Detention Officer

Position Summary:

Under general direction of a supervisory employee during an assigned tour of duty, controls the general conduct and behavior
of juvenile residents, the maintenance of discipline, and custodial, recreational, transportation, and housekeeping functions; does other related duties as required.

Essential Functions:

• Transports juvenile residents to various locations outside the institution using a van/car to assist them in obtaining needed treatments, attend court, and so forth.
• Supervises and/or participates in various programs/activities with juvenile residents to stimulate interest in and cooperation with various social/education programs.
• Provides advice to individual juvenile residents on personal problems they encounter while in the institution such as peer
  pressure, adapting to the surroundings, and so forth by presenting a positive role model and using common sense to relieve tension and prevent additional problems.
• Keeps track of assigned juveniles under immediate charge through periodic head counts, and records schedules, activities,
  incidents, and so forth in a logbook to be aware at all times of the whereabouts of juvenile residents.
• Uses appropriate techniques to calm disruptive juvenile residents in a potentially dangerous situation and may physically restrain them to prevent them from endangering their health/safety or others.
• Observes unusual physical appearance/behavior of juvenile residents to uncover violations of institutional rules and protect the health, security, safety, and welfare of juvenile residents.
• Detects unusual odors such as marijuana, cigarette smoke, fires, or alcohol to uncover violations, and protects the security, safety, and welfare of juveniles.
• Listens for unusual sounds such as a sudden change in noise level, calls for help, cries of fire, arguments juveniles’ residents, scraping of metal, and so forth to maintain the security, safety, and welfare of the juvenile residents, and to react in accord with established policies/regulations/procedures in crisis situations.
• Learns the names and recognizes juvenile residents under immediate charge and maintains a constructive personal relationship with them to control their general conduct/behavior and to identify potential problems.
• Patrol’s various locations within the institution for the purpose of checking safety/security hazards such as fire, smoke, broken
  pipes, unlocked doors, and tampered windows/locks to protect the security/safety of juveniles and the institution.
• Searches juveniles’ clothing/possessions, and makes periodic room checks to detect contraband in accord with established
  policies, regulations, and procedures.
• Supervises, performs, and instructs juvenile residents in housekeeping duties such as sweeping/mopping floors, making beds, and so forth to maintain sanitary conditions in resident areas. Ensures that juveniles maintain personal hygiene.
• Listens on conversations among juvenile residents to detect possible security problems such as planning of escapes and so forth, and reports such information in accord with established policies, regulations, and procedures.
• Writes comprehensive, factual, incident reports and/or fills out short forms such as head counts and safety reports to give routine, detailed information.
• Will be required to learn to utilize various types of electronic and/or manual recording and information systems used by the agency, office, or related units.

Requirements:

• Graduation from high school or vocational school or possession of an approved high school equivalency certificate.
• Appointees will be required to successfully complete a training program approved by the New Jersey Police Training Commission within the time period prescribed by law or the New Jersey Police Training Commission.
• Applicants must be citizens of the United States.
• Appointees will be required to possess a driver’s license valid in New Jersey only if the operation of a vehicle, rather than employee mobility, is necessary to perform essential duties of the position.
• Ability to cope with crisis situations that occur in a juvenile detention facility, to apply knowledge and use of sound judgment in critical situations, to empathize with juveniles from different backgrounds, to write concise, accurate reports, utilize various types of electronic and/or manual recording and information systems used by the agency, office, or related units.