Administrative Staff Analyst - BU (Legal Unit)

Full Job Description

About the Department:

The Seattle Police Department is comprised of approximately 1,600 dedicated law enforcement professionals all committed to creating and fostering a work environment that is collaborative, innovative, and leading the way in law enforcement principles and practices. Ours is a culture that encourages top performers to adhere to a standard of excellence in the identification of and resolution to complex challenges. At SPD we acknowledge and honor the fundamental value and dignity of all individuals and pledge ourselves to create and maintain an environment that respects diverse traditions, heritages, and experiences.

The Seattle Police Department (SPD) is seeking an Administrative Staff Analyst to join the Legal Section. This position is responsible for processing some of the most complicated and sensitive Public Disclosure Requests (PDRs) and Subpoenas Duces Tecum (SDTs) received by the City, including those related to litigation in which the City is a party, high-profile and newsworthy matters, Officer Involved Shooting and similar investigations of acute interest to the public, and officer disciplinary and personnel records. The work performed by Legal Section employees is fast-paced, requires strong technical skills to search and retrieve records from multiple, sophisticated databases, conduct email searches, review electronic records including in-car and body-worn video recorded by police officers, and the ability to apply expertise and higher-order judgment to determine record responsiveness and to apply redactions reflecting current statutory and case law. This position is also responsible for processing subpoenas to appear, preservation requests, U-Visa certifications, and responding to claims against SPD.

Requirements

Position Duties and Responsibilities:

• Review and respond to complex Public Disclosure Requests ensuring that legally mandated deadlines are met.
• Perform electronic searches of sophisticated digital records systems or create activities for other SPD Sections to perform searches for the limited number of databases where Legal Section does not have direct access to the records.
• Perform email searches including scoping the search, developing parameters and keywords for queries utilizing the City’s eDiscovery tool, creating, and managing all search cases in eDiscovery tool, and exporting and downloading .pst files to specified share-folder locations.
• Communicate orally and in writing with requestors and attorneys regarding requests/SDTs, provide including acknowledging and clarifying the request/SDT, providing estimated response date(s), intended search parameters, updated response date(s), records transmittal communications, exemption logs, etc.
• Use GovQA system to communicate with requesters and SPD staff and to document all aspects of PDR process.
• Review SDTs for compliance with local and federal court rules. After researching court orders to determine what records are requested and responsive, contact all SPD Sections to obtain records for Legal Section’s review and SPD’s response
• Closely review large volumes of records for exempt or sensitive content applying in-depth knowledge to ensure compliance with the PRA, other local and federal statutes, court rules, and city-wide or departmental procedures.
• Meet with various SPD Sections, including Command Staff, to review records for potential exemptions or to provide guidance on sensitive materials.
• Coordinate with other Law Enforcement Agencies and/or Prosecutor Offices, SPD Media Section, other City Departments on requests affecting multiple entities.
• Understand and comply with City retention schedules and maintain files in compliance with those schedules.
• Implement Preservation Requests by researching incidents to determine scope of records, reviewing attorney correspondence for requested preservation, and obtaining records from various Sections and retains records in Legal Section.
• Prepare and review legal documents from the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Citizenship, and Immigration Services, for Petitions for U Nonimmigrant Status for SPD’s Certifying Official.
• Analyze subpoenas to appear for compliance with local courts rules and communicate with SPD personnel to provide guidance on how to comply with the court order.
• Understand and comply with CJIS compliance standards for law enforcement records systems.
• Communicate and collaborate with Seattle City Attorney’s Office (Law Dept.) and outside entities in providing discovery for various types of civil lawsuits.
• Serve as technical expert for complex research and analysis related to public records requests.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications:

Requires two years of administrative experience and a bachelor’s degree in business or public administration or related field (or a combination of education, training and/or experience that provides an equivalent background to perform the work).

Position Requirements:

• Must pass a Seattle Police Department background investigation.
• Must have a valid Washington State Driver’s license.
• This position is a hybrid position; effective 01/02/25, the City requires employees to report in person 3 days a week (subject to change). Individual schedules will be based on an agreement between the employee and their supervisor.

Additional Information

Additional Information:

The City of Seattle offers a comprehensive benefits package including vacation, holiday, and sick leave as well as medical, dental, vision, life and long-term disability insurance for employees and their dependents. More information about employee benefits is available on the City's website at: https://www.seattle.gov/human-resources/benefits/employees-and-covered-family-members/most-employees-plans.

The full salary range for this position is $47.39 - $55.19 per hour.
New employees begin at Step 1 of the pay progression, which is $47.39 hourly. Current City employees’ starting rate of pay will be based on Personnel Rules regarding promotions. This is a full-time (1.0 FTE) regular position with full benefits. This is a Civil Service position eligible for overtime.

How to Apply:

• Apply online at http://www.seattle.gov/jobs. Please refer to: Job# 2026-00249
• Attach a cover letter and resume that provide additional information on why your skills and experience make you qualified for this job are required.
• Incomplete applications will not be considered.

If you have any questions, please contact Roth Lim at Roth.Lim@seattle.gov.