Psychologist -Juvenile Forensic Evaluator- Statewide

Eligibility and Relocation

This position has a residency waiver and will be accepting applications from residents and non-residents of Colorado. This announcement is open to potential candidates who are legal residents of the United States. All legal residents of the United States are eligible to apply and compete. If appointed to a position, applicants from outside of Colorado will be required to relocate to Colorado prior to their start date, at their own expense.

Please note:

This posting will be used to fill multiple positions.

Located within the Colorado Department of Human Services, the Office of Civil and Forensic Mental Health (OCFMH) is responsible for policy development, service provision and coordination, program monitoring and evaluation, and administrative oversight of the public behavioral health system. OCFMH funds, supports, and monitors numerous mental health and substance abuse community programs and providers. OCFMH also operates the Colorado Mental Health Hospitals at Fort Logan and Pueblo and the Forensic Services Division.

The Forensic Services Division is responsible for six departments including Forensic Community Based Services (FCBS), Jail Based Evaluation and Restoration (J ), Outpatient Restoration (OPR), the Forensic Support Team (FST), Forensic Community Based Services (FCBS), and the Court Services Department. The Court Services Department responds to court-ordered referrals for the evaluation of competency, restoration, sanity, and mental condition. Court Services has offices located in both Denver and Pueblo on the Mental Health Hospital campuses.

Court Services manages and monitors the completion and deadlines for orders issued by the courts and assigns the evaluations to be performed by psychologists and psychiatrists in accordance with Colorado Revised Statute C.R.S 16-8.5. The work unit is responsible for compliance with the Barnes v. DLC Consent Decree.

Our teams work within various settings including community agencies, jails, courts, and hospitals. The locations can include locked units and secure facilities and our clients may at times be unpredictable due to their mental health needs. The team is required to make critical decisions in dynamic and fast‑paced environments to ensure a high level of accountability for patient care. Staff maintain updated skills, knowledge, abilities, and competencies through continuing education, clinical supervision, literature review, and discipline and team development.

This position may be required to travel throughout Colorado to meet the needs of the department.

The current schedule will be a hybrid work arrangement (remote work and report on site 2 days per week) but may change without prior notification based on business demands.

The candidate selected for this position will have the option of being located at either The Colorado Mental Health Hospital in Fort Logan or Pueblo.

This position exists to perform and ensure the quality and timely completion of court-ordered evaluations and restoration reports required by Colorado courts. The evaluator is authorized to represent the Department in communication with judges and courts directly. A forensic evaluator must be a licensed psychologist or psychiatrist by Colorado Statute.

• Completes the equivalent of 12 court-ordered evaluations for competency or restoration of competency per month.
• Completes a written report detailing their opinion regarding competency, and if the opinion is incompetent an explanation of barriers to competency, clearly detailed in the report. Written reports also include information and opinions specified in C.R.S 19-2.5.
• May be subpoenaed to testify to provide the court with information regarding their opinion.
• Evaluations may occur in various settings including hospitals, jails, or in the community and this position responds to the location specified in the court order.
• Requests collateral information as needed to inform their opinion and seeks consultation from their supervisor or colleagues on difficult, complex, or ambiguous cases.
• Develops and delivers to courts, via expert testimony, a professional opinion regarding the legal question of competency and restoration.
• Details information utilized to inform their opinion, remains objective and neutral, and provides testimony regarding opinion to a legal question in the court order, and explains the basis for any clinical (i.e., diagnosis, prognosis) and forensic opinions.
• Able to testify regarding the assessment process, including instruments utilized during evaluation and collateral sources requested to inform opinion.
• Attends annual and ongoing competency training as mandated by statute and Forensic Services to ensure evaluators stay informed of current trends and research in the field of forensic psychology.
• Evaluators present and provide feedback to peers during case presentations for continued growth and development, and will have their work periodically reviewed for…