Los Angeles District Attorney Forum

[Anonymous User]

new poster/confirmation here:

2 weeks ago I called my DA supervisor/friend from my multiple clerkships.
I was put on hold while a call was made to the main office to inquire.

That call revealed that:

1. YES, all 40 offers (20 for now, 20 for January) had been made.
2. The list will remain "active" well into next year.
3. They absolutely intend to hire more off of this list.

I have received no call and nothing in the mail in any capacity.

Bummer, but, thought I would share.

The end.

[Anonymous User]

Does anyone know how many people received interviews so far with the DA during this last round?

[Anonymous User]

Does anyone know how many people received interviews so far with the DA during this last round?

At a recent Saturday training seminar for the DA's, Jackie Lacey spoke and stated that the interviews with her were done, and that 125 were conducted.

[Anonymous User]

New post here. Definitely confirmed from multiple sources that offers for the August class and January class went out and are complete. There is a possibility of new classes next year and they'll pull from the group of people who already interviewed with the DA. Not sure what the fate is for those that didn't go on to the last round interview.

[Anonymous User]

Has anyone received a letter stating they were not hired?

[Anonymous User]

I have yet to hear anything, nor has anyone that I know of who applied.

[Anonymous User]

I have yet to hear anything, nor has anyone that I know of who applied.

Agreed. I have heard nothing at all "officially"
NO good news
NO bad news.

I only hear rumors and "confirmed" info from inside sources.
And, this has generally been bad news....for me.

The hiring/calls seems to be real.
But, I still have heard nothing, nor do I know of anyone who has (have 3 friends in the same spot as us)
ALL have heard nothing in any capacity.

[Anonymous User]

Also haven't heard anything.

[Anonymous User]

Also haven't heard anything.

Ditto here.

[Anonymous User]

I received my Notice of Exam Results yesterday. Regarding my score it states:

Interview score: 98.50%
Final score: 99.00%
Band 1

I was super stoked at first.. and thought I was a top candidate because I assumed the scores were out of 100. However, upon further examination I read the letter more closely.. under "Explanation of Bands" the top two bands are V (101-110) and 1 (95-100). So I didn't do as great as I initially thought haha. Mildly embarrassing because I shared my results with old co-workers at the office. Of course I am very fortunate I am moving on - this job is my absolute dream career.

There is blurb at the bottom of the notice that states you can set up an appointment to review your examination. Does anyone have experience reviewing their exam? I called the HR office today and they stated people who placed in bands V and 1 will be contacted in "the next few weeks" to receive a second interview date. I'm glad I will have ample time to prepare for the next round.

Good luck to all! I would love to hear more insight on what is going on with this interview process and how people scored. Any insight on what to expect for the second interview?

What is the "oral examination"? How can I prepare for it? I'm interviewing for a legal assistant job with the county and I want to have strong results. How did you prepare for your oral exam? Any insight will really help out.

[Anonymous User]

I received my Notice of Exam Results yesterday. Regarding my score it states:

Interview score: 98.50%
Final score: 99.00%
Band 1

I was super stoked at first.. and thought I was a top candidate because I assumed the scores were out of 100. However, upon further examination I read the letter more closely.. under "Explanation of Bands" the top two bands are V (101-110) and 1 (95-100). So I didn't do as great as I initially thought haha. Mildly embarrassing because I shared my results with old co-workers at the office. Of course I am very fortunate I am moving on - this job is my absolute dream career.

There is blurb at the bottom of the notice that states you can set up an appointment to review your examination. Does anyone have experience reviewing their exam? I called the HR office today and they stated people who placed in bands V and 1 will be contacted in "the next few weeks" to receive a second interview date. I'm glad I will have ample time to prepare for the next round.

Good luck to all! I would love to hear more insight on what is going on with this interview process and how people scored. Any insight on what to expect for the second interview?

What is the "oral examination"? How can I prepare for it? I'm interviewing for a legal assistant job with the county and I want to have strong results. How did you prepare for your oral exam? Any insight will really help out.

[Anonymous User]

I received my Notice of Exam Results yesterday. Regarding my score it states:

Interview score: 98.50%
Final score: 99.00%
Band 1

I was super stoked at first.. and thought I was a top candidate because I assumed the scores were out of 100. However, upon further examination I read the letter more closely.. under "Explanation of Bands" the top two bands are V (101-110) and 1 (95-100). So I didn't do as great as I initially thought haha. Mildly embarrassing because I shared my results with old co-workers at the office. Of course I am very fortunate I am moving on - this job is my absolute dream career.

There is blurb at the bottom of the notice that states you can set up an appointment to review your examination. Does anyone have experience reviewing their exam? I called the HR office today and they stated people who placed in bands V and 1 will be contacted in "the next few weeks" to receive a second interview date. I'm glad I will have ample time to prepare for the next round.

Good luck to all! I would love to hear more insight on what is going on with this interview process and how people scored. Any insight on what to expect for the second interview?

What is the "oral examination"? How can I prepare for it? I'm interviewing for a legal assistant job with the county and I want to have strong results. How did you prepare for your oral exam? Any insight will really help out.

An "Oral Exam" is just the Civil Service word for interview. The interview is comprised of several "general" questions, such as: why do you want to work for our department, questions regarding references to prior work experience cited on your Resume and how it's relevant to the proffered position, etc....

Then, after the general questions you're given your "exam" questions, which are essentially fact patterns.

A fact pattern is a set of facts involving different parties who are involved in some type of conflict. There are planted facts that "trigger" a specific response (i.e.- a right answer). And they want to see if you catch the triggers and can cite the rule that applies. Additionally, they evaluate your aptitude for dealing with these parties in a fair and appropriate manner. There is always a portion of the exam where there aren't any "right" answers, they just want to test your ability to think on your feet, see how you analyze facts under pressure, evaluate your public speaking ability, confidence, and general knowledge of the field.

An example of a fact pattern is something like this...

You're a defense attorney for a young man named Dave (Defendant). Dave is a repeat client, always in and out of jail. Dave calls your office and says he needs some legal advice. Then Dave proceeds to tell you that he shot his wife Vicki (Victim). He tells you that he was so nervous that he threw the gun out the window while skipping town. He's pretty sure he threw it in front of a local elementary school. It's 6:00 AM, school is scheduled to start at 8:15 AM. Dave asks you to recover the gun and put it in a safe place for him.

The Examiners then ask, "what do you do?" They are many triggers in this very short, seemingly sparse fact pattern and it's like pick up sticks... you have a limited amount of time to pick up as many triggered facts as possible. You have multiple professional responsibility and ethical dilemma issues to un-knot during the "oral exam" (or interview).

Based on your answers, they rate you. They combine your "oral exam" rating with your resume to get your combined overall score and then they place you for "eligibility" to be hired. The better your score, the higher the band you'll be put in. If you're a Veteran you get an automatic 10 point bonus, and will be place in band V. (I.e.- if you score 89 as a vet you'll end up with a 99, if you score 100 as a vet you'll end up with a score of 110, etc.) Scores are marked for scaling: 95-100 = Band 1, 94.5 - 90 = Band 2, etc...

The department hires from band 1 first, per the rules of Civil Service. If, and only if, the dept. can't find any suitable candidates from band 1, or there are too few candidate in band 1 (40 positions open and only 10 candidate are in band 1), can the start pulling from lower bands. But that rarely happens.

A score review provides the opportunity to go back and look at how you were rated, but you will not be able to see the raters notes. I.e.- "Public speaking ability" Outstanding 5, Very Good 4, Competent 3, Needs Improvement 2, Unsatisfactory 1. You'll see a little circle or check next to the number they gave you. The category will have a general explanation which gives you a very high level overview of what they were looking for: "The person speaks clearly, slowing, with the appropriate tone and demeanor, asserting they're answers in a clear and concise manner which reflects sounds logic."

This is not really that helpful, unless you get a really low score... anything under 89... in that case you should definitely go back and evaluate your strengths and weaknesses. You're generally not allowed to take notes, but some reviewers, if they nice and you catch them on a good day, will let you.

Hope this helps....

Thanks. I did not see your post until after the interview, but my interview was conducted how you described. I was placed in band 1 and I am up for an interview. How does the oral examination differ from the final interview?

edit: a million thanks. I appreciate the level of detail you replied with. I am certain it will help out others during interviews!

[Anonymous User]

I received my Notice of Exam Results yesterday. Regarding my score it states:

Interview score: 98.50%
Final score: 99.00%
Band 1

I was super stoked at first.. and thought I was a top candidate because I assumed the scores were out of 100. However, upon further examination I read the letter more closely.. under "Explanation of Bands" the top two bands are V (101-110) and 1 (95-100). So I didn't do as great as I initially thought haha. Mildly embarrassing because I shared my results with old co-workers at the office. Of course I am very fortunate I am moving on - this job is my absolute dream career.
...

That's very impressive. How did the interviews go? Can anybody here share the differences between second round and third round interviews?

[Anonymous User]

so who else got that email today?

[Anonymous User]

so who else got that email today?

I think everyone left in the running (people who got fingerprinted)!

[Anonymous User]

i dont think everyone that got fingerprinted got the email that was sent out today.

i think the email went out to ppl who got the 3rd round interview (not everyone who got fingerprinted got the third round interview).

so.... there were 122 ppl who got the third round interview.

25 offers were made (24 accepted) for class starting in August 2014.

that leaves 97 on the eligible list.

and so far, 14 people are starting in January 2015.

that leaves 83 on the eligible list.

i'm guessing the class sizes stay about the same. so say 10 more offers are made in november (for the class starting in january 2015).

so if we don't get one of those offers in november, there will be like... 73 of us waiting to be hired for a third class that would start some unknown time in 2015.

[Anonymous User]

i dont think everyone that got fingerprinted got the email that was sent out today.

i think the email went out to ppl who got the 3rd round interview (not everyone who got fingerprinted got the third round interview).

so.... there were 122 ppl who got the third round interview.

25 offers were made (24 accepted) for class starting in August 2014.

that leaves 97 on the eligible list.

and so far, 14 people are starting in January 2015.

that leaves 83 on the eligible list.

i'm guessing the class sizes stay about the same. so say 10 more offers are made in november (for the class starting in january 2015).

so if we don't get one of those offers in november, there will be like... 73 of us waiting to be hired for a third class that would start some unknown time in 2015.

I didn't get a third interview, but I did get the email yesterday.

I was also fingerprinted.

[Anonymous User]

i dont think everyone that got fingerprinted got the email that was sent out today.

i think the email went out to ppl who got the 3rd round interview (not everyone who got fingerprinted got the third round interview).

so.... there were 122 ppl who got the third round interview.

25 offers were made (24 accepted) for class starting in August 2014.

that leaves 97 on the eligible list.

and so far, 14 people are starting in January 2015.

that leaves 83 on the eligible list.

i'm guessing the class sizes stay about the same. so say 10 more offers are made in november (for the class starting in january 2015).

so if we don't get one of those offers in november, there will be like... 73 of us waiting to be hired for a third class that would start some unknown time in 2015.

I didn't get a third interview, but I did get the email yesterday.

I didn't get a 3rd interview either, but I was fingerprinted. I also received the email.

[Anonymous User]

i dont think everyone that got fingerprinted got the email that was sent out today.

i think the email went out to ppl who got the 3rd round interview (not everyone who got fingerprinted got the third round interview).

so.... there were 122 ppl who got the third round interview.

25 offers were made (24 accepted) for class starting in August 2014.

that leaves 97 on the eligible list.

and so far, 14 people are starting in January 2015.

that leaves 83 on the eligible list.

i'm guessing the class sizes stay about the same. so say 10 more offers are made in november (for the class starting in january 2015).

so if we don't get one of those offers in november, there will be like... 73 of us waiting to be hired for a third class that would start some unknown time in 2015.

I didn't get a third interview, but I did get the email yesterday.

I didn't get a 3rd interview either, but I was fingerprinted. I also received the email.

Any updates? I guess we're waiting to see who gets call for a 3rd rounds interview in Nov.? From there, we see who gets an offer for Jan.?

[Anonymous User]

i dont think everyone that got fingerprinted got the email that was sent out today.

i think the email went out to ppl who got the 3rd round interview (not everyone who got fingerprinted got the third round interview).

so.... there were 122 ppl who got the third round interview.

25 offers were made (24 accepted) for class starting in August 2014.

that leaves 97 on the eligible list.

and so far, 14 people are starting in January 2015.

that leaves 83 on the eligible list.

i'm guessing the class sizes stay about the same. so say 10 more offers are made in november (for the class starting in january 2015).

so if we don't get one of those offers in november, there will be like... 73 of us waiting to be hired for a third class that would start some unknown time in 2015.

I didn't get a third interview, but I did get the email yesterday.

I didn't get a 3rd interview either, but I was fingerprinted. I also received the email.

Any updates? I guess we're waiting to see who gets call for a 3rd rounds interview in Nov.? From there, we see who gets an offer for Jan.?

I did not read that letter/email we all received last month to indicate pending additional interviews in November.
I understood it to say that additional job offers will be extended in November to those who already interviewed.
Then....
Through next year, if needed, the list will be used to continue the process accordingly.

[Anonymous User]

I did not read that letter/email we all received last month to indicate pending additional interviews in November.
I understood it to say that additional job offers will be extended in November to those who already interviewed.
Then....
Through next year, if needed, the list will be used to continue the process accordingly.

JEEZUS. You're right! I just reread that email. I read it incorrectly the first time and thought, foolishly, that I still had some modicum of hope of getting in with the January class.

"In reality, hope is the worst of all evils, because it prolongs the torments of man." -FRIEDRICH NIETZSCHE

[Anonymous User]

I did not read that letter/email we all received last month to indicate pending additional interviews in November.
I understood it to say that additional job offers will be extended in November to those who already interviewed.
Then....
Through next year, if needed, the list will be used to continue the process accordingly.

JEEZUS. You're right! I just reread that email. I read it incorrectly the first time and thought, foolishly, that I still had some modicum of hope of getting in with the January class.

"In reality, hope is the worst of all evils, because it prolongs the torments of man." -FRIEDRICH NIETZSCHE[/quote]


You're not kidding.
Hope is tragic sometimes...
And, this dangling carrot process is a drag.
I guess in the large arc of life, this is just a passing moment.
Best wishes to all.

[Anonymous User]

Any news? Anyone get any calls/letters about November?

[Anonymous User]

Looks like more offers are going out from the January class. I received a call from Jackie Lacey this morning with an offer of employment. Good luck everyone!

[Anonymous User]

Looks like more offers are going out from the January class. I received a call from Jackie Lacey this morning with an offer of employment. Good luck everyone!

Yes. Me too.

Good luck to you all.
I know the stressful feelings are horrible.

I hear the full total of hirings will be 70-80.
Many calls to come over the next year.