CRIMINALIST

Full Job Description

We welcome applications from everyone.

We will be accepting online applications from Friday, February 20, 2026, at 8:00 A.M. (PT) until Thursday, March 19, 2026, at 5:00 P.M. (PT)

All applications must be received before 5:00 P.M. (PT) on Thursday, March 19, 2026, to be accepted.

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Check Out Our Outstanding Benefits

Los Angeles County offers one of the strongest public-sector benefits packages in the nation: https://hr.lacounty.gov/benefits/

Why work for us?

With more than 10 million residents, Los Angeles County is the most populous county in the nation!

As the largest employer in Southern California, over 116,000 employees in more than 38 Departments, we provide vital public services as diverse as law enforcement, property assessment, public health protection, water conservation, cultural activities and many more.

We are dedicated professionals committed to preserving the dignity and integrity of the workplace as well as protecting the rights of each employee.

The County has more than 2,300 different job descriptions, offering a lifetime of opportunities and careers! We offer one of the strongest public-sector benefits packages in the country.

Join us and discover a rich selection of health care options, robust retirement plans and the flexibility to work, relax, and rejuvenate to reach your fullest personal and professional potential.

CLASSIFICATION STANDARDS

Positions allocable to this entry level class typically report to a Supervising Criminalist and work under close supervision and guidance in a forensic science or criminalistics laboratory, receiving work of a progressively responsible nature and of broadening scope where capability develops and complete familiarity with all phases of laboratory analysis is gained.

Incumbents in this class are characterized by their participation in an extensive, mandatory in-service training program designed to teach the techniques and procedures used in forensic science or criminalistics laboratories and, through classroom instruction and hands-on training, prepare incumbents for higher-level criminalistics positions.

Incumbents are required to respond to crime scenes at any time during their assigned shift, as well as during off-duty hours, and will be required to testify in court regarding their analyses.

Upon completion of a one-year probationary period with a rating of competent, incumbents may be assigned to any laboratory section or regional laboratory.

Requirements

Performs, under close supervision, physical, biological, and chemical analyses of evidentiary materials such as blood, narcotics, drugs, hairs and fibers, metals, questioned documents, firearms, ammunition, toolmarks, and body tissues and fluids; utilizes microscopic techniques, comparison macrophotography, chromatography, spectroscopy, spectrography, and physical, analytical, and comparison techniques.Prepares written findings and displays for court presentations; testifies in court concerning findings as established by the laboratory analyses and interprets findings as a qualified expert witness.

Upon successful completion of training requirements, responds to crime scenes and independently examines, collects, interprets, and preserves physical evidence for analysis and evaluation.Researches technical journals, textbooks, chemical manuals, and other source materials to determine the best methods of performing analytical testing.Participates, as assigned, in conducting research into new methods and procedures of scientific criminal investigation.

Qualifications

REQUIREMENTS TO QUALIFY

TRAINING AND EXPERIENCE
A Bachelor's degree* from an accredited college or university with specialization in criminalistics, chemistry, biology, biochemistry, or a closely related scientific field, including eight (8) semester units or twelve (12) quarter units of general chemistry.

LICENSE
A valid California Class C Driver License is required to perform job-related essential functions. Candidates offered this position would be required to show proof of a driver license prior to appointment.

Out-of-state applicants must have a valid license from the state in which they reside at the time of filing. Out-of-state applicants will be required to obtain a California Class C Driver License prior to appointment.

LICENSE INFORMATIONSuccessful applicants for this position will be required to obtain a copy of their driving record from the California State Department of Motor Vehicles before being appointed.

A copy of your driving record must be presented at the time of your appointment. License must not be suspended, restricted, or revoked.

AN APPLICANT WHOSE DRIVING RECORD SHOWS THREE (3) OR MORE MOVING VIOLATIONS WITHIN THE LAST YEAR WILL NOT BE APPOINTED.

OTHER REQUIREMENTS

• Applicants must be able to perform the essential functions of this classification, with or without a reasonable accommodation.
• VISION: Color perception must be adequate to effectively and safely perform essential job-related functions.

PHYSICAL CLASS
Physical Class III – Moderate: This class requires that the incumbent stand or walk most of the time with bending, stooping, squatting, twisting, reaching, working on irregular surfaces, occasional lifting of objects weighing over 25 pounds, and frequent lifting of 10-25 pounds.

SPECIAL REQUIREMENT INFORMATION
*To receive credit for your education, include a legible copy of your official transcript from an accredited institution at the time of filing, or by Thursday, March 19, 2026. The document should show the date the degree was conferred and be in English. Applicants with degrees from foreign universities may need to provide an evaluation of U.S. equivalency and official translation of the degree to English. For more information on our standards for educational documents, please visit:

https://file.lacounty.gov/SDSInter/dhr/070812_PPG123.pdf and

https://file.lacounty.gov/SDSInter/dhr/205105_PPG_123_ACE_Resource_Guide.pdf

Documentation must be submitted no later than Thursday, March 19, 2026, to sheriffexamsunit@lasd.org and indicate your name, the exam title, and exam number. Failure to provide the required documentation will result in application rejection. Unofficial transcripts will not be accepted to meet the education requirement.

APPLICANTS MUST MEET THE EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS BY THURSDAY, MARCH 19, 2026, IN ORDER TO BE CONSIDERED FOR THIS EXAMINATION.

SUPPLEMENTAL QUESTIONNAIREAs part of this application process, applicants will be required to complete a supplemental questionnaire.

The questionnaire contains a pre-investigative questionnaire which will be used as part of the background investigation process to ensure applicants meet the standards set forth by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.

Applicants who fail the pre-investigative questionnaire will be disqualified and will have to wait three (3) months from the date of the disqualification in order to reapply.

Additional Information

EXAMINATION CONTENT

A computerized multiple-choice test weighted 100% assessing:

• Knowledge of Scientific Principles in the Fields of Biology, Chemistry, Biochemistry, and/or Forensics
• The Ability to Learn and Apply New Concepts and Information
• The Ability to Read, Understand, and Follow Instructions and Standard Operating Procedures
• Being Detail-oriented
• Being Focused on Generating Accurate and High-Quality Work Product
• Time Management Skills
• Being Ethical
  
  

THE COMPUTERIZED MULTIPLE-CHOICE TEST IS NOT REVIEWABLE BY CANDIDATES PER CIVIL SERVICE RULE 7.19.

APPLICANTS MUST ACHIEVE A PASSING SCORE OF 70% OR HIGHER ON THE EXAMINATION IN ORDER TO BE PLACED ON THE ELIGIBLE LIST.

TESTING ACCOMMODATION

If you require an accommodation to fairly complete any part of the assessment process, you will be required to submit documentation from a qualified medical provider or other qualified professional to support your request for a testing accommodation.

Please note, you shall be contacted at a later time by a Sheriff’s Department representative that will guide you through the process.

You will be provided with an initial deadline to submit documentation.

Failure to submit the required documentation by the deadline will delay your participation in the examination process and consideration for initial placement on the eligible list.

TEST PREPARATION

DHR provides study guides and other test preparation resources to help candidates prepare for employment tests. While the guides may help in preparing for the test, we recommend reviewing all related materials that seem necessary.

• Various information can be found on DHR's website at https://hr.lacounty.gov/job-search-toolkit/. The section dedicated to test preparation is "Employment Test Assistance."

VETERAN'S CREDIT

If you are a veteran, you may be eligible for veteran's credit, which is an additional 10% of the total points added to a passing score.

We will need a copy of your form DD214 to review, so please include that with your application or email it to sheriffexamsunit@lasd.org as soon as possible, so if you are eligible for veteran's credit, we can include it before the list is available.

ELIGIBILITY AND VACANCY INFORMATION

The names of applicants receiving a passing grade in the examination will be placed on the eligible list for a period of six (6) months from the date of promulgation.

The list of successful applicants created from this exam will be used to fill vacancies within the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, Technology and Support Division, Scientific Services Bureau.

SPECIAL INFORMATION:

SUCCESSFUL APPLICANTS MUST COMPLETE A THOROUGH BACKGROUND INVESTIGATION, INCLUDING FINGERPRINT SEARCH.

Examples of disqualifying factors include: Any felony convictions; job related misdemeanor convictions; certain serious traffic convictions or patterns of traffic violations (3 moving violations in one year; failure to appear; at fault accidents; suspended license; driving under the influence); poor credit history; poor employment history; substance abuse; anyone on probation.

ZERO TOLERANCE POLICY IF HIRED

The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department has a "zero tolerance" policy for its employees for the following:

• Use of narcotics, controlled substances, and/or prescription drugs without a prescription.

Any employee found in violation of this policy will be subject to discharge.

AVAILABLE SHIFT: Any Shift

APPOINTEES MUST BE WILLING TO WORK ANY SHIFT, INCLUDING EVENINGS, NIGHTS, WEEKENDS, AND HOLIDAYS.

APPLICATION AND FILING INFORMATION:

We only accept applications filed online. Applications submitted by U.S. mail, fax, or in person are not accepted. Apply online by clicking on the "Apply" green button at the top right of this posting.

This website can also be used to get application status updates. Your application and supplemental questionnaire must be submitted electronically before 5:00 P.M., PT, on Thursday, March 19, 2026.

Please fill out the application completely. Provide relevant job experience including employer's name and address, job title, beginning and ending dates, number of hours worked per week, and description of work performed.

We may verify information included in the application at any point during the examination and hiring process, including after an appointment has been made.

Falsification of information could result in refusal of application or rescission of appointment.

Copying verbiage from the Requirements or class specification as your work experience will not be sufficient to demonstrate meeting the requirements.

Doing so may result in an incomplete application and may lead to disqualification.

We will send notifications to the email address provided on the application, so it is important that you provide a valid email address.

If you choose to unsubscribe or opt out from receiving our emails, it is possible to view notices by logging into governmentjobs.com and checking the profile inbox.

It is every applicant's responsibility to take steps to view correspondence, and we will not consider claims of missing notices to be a valid reason for re-scheduling an exam part.

Register the below domains as approved senders to prevent email notifications from being filtered as spam/junk mail.

• msbeyer@lasd.org
• info@governmentjobs.com
• noreply@governmentjobs.com
  
  

New email addresses need to be verified. This only needs to be done once per email address and can be done at any time by logging in to governmentjobs.com and following the prompts. This is to enhance the security of the online application and to prevent incorrectly entered email addresses.

NO APPLICATIONS WILL BE ACCEPTED OUTSIDE OF THE OFFICIAL APPLICATION FILING PERIOD, NO EXCEPTIONS.

TO ENSURE THAT YOUR APPLICATION HAS BEEN SUCCESSFULLY SUBMITTED, YOU MUST HAVE RECEIVED A CONFIRMATION EMAIL AS VERIFICATION.

SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER:

Federal law requires that all employed persons have a Social Security Number, so include yours when applying.

COMPUTER AND INTERNET ACCESS AT PUBLIC LIBRARIES:

For candidates who may not have regular access to a computer or the internet, applications can be completed on computers at public libraries throughout Los Angeles County.

NO SHARING OF USER ID, EMAIL, AND PASSWORD:

All applicants must file their application using their OWN user ID and password. Using a family member or friend's user ID and password may erase a candidate's original application record.

California Relay Services Phone: (800) 735-2922
ADA Coordinator Phone: (213) 229-1621
Teletype Phone: (213) 626-0251
Department Contact Name: Professional Examinations Unit
Department Contact Phone: (323) 526-5611
Department Contact Email: sheriffexamsunit@lasd.org