Fingerprint Specialist (Sheriff's Office)

POSTING TYPE: Open competitive
DEPARTMENT: Sheriff
HOURS: Full-time
HIRING RANGE: $52,326- $58,867/year (grade 105)
SALARY RANGE: $52,326- $81,760/year
LOCATION: Hastings, LEC
UNION: T320JL
CLOSE DATE: 4:30 p.m. on 2/23/2026

* This position is being posted to fill current and future permanent vacancies. Please be sure to include ALL relevant work experience on your application form.

Who We Are
Dakota County is Minnesota's third largest county and home to more than 400,000 residents. Our motto is "Be More" and we strive every day to achieve excellent public service, with a focus on four values: Service, Integrity, People, and Innovation.

Dakota County aims to create an environment that is welcoming and inclusive of diverse people, backgrounds, and experiences. Our goal is to have a workforce that is reflective of the communities and individuals we serve. We promote an equitable and culturally aware work environment where everyone can be their authentic selves.

Candidates must pass ALL recruitment and pre-employment requirements listed below to become a Fingerprint Specialist. Candidates who are unable to successfully pass the requirements below will be removed from further consideration.

1. Educational/Experience Qualifications: candidates must meet the minimum qualifications as listed on the posting and be able to produce appropriate documentation.

2. Interviews: Candidates will be asked to complete a series of interviews; this may include phone interviews, oral board interviews and/or interviews with the Sheriff and Chief Deputy.

3. Background Check: candidates must pass a thorough background investigation conducted by the Dakota County Sheriff's Office. Applicants must meet standards regarding acceptable driving and conviction records, law enforcement contacts, employment history, and honesty.

Minimum Qualifications

*High School Graduation/GED
AND
* Two years of full-time work experience. Convert any part-time experience to full years (i.e., 20 hours/ week for 2 years equals 1-year full time). Do not round up years of experience (i.e., 2 yrs. 9 mos. would equal 2 years).

OR

* A combination of POST education (i.e., completed coursework with an unfinished degree) AND full-time work experience to total two years.

Pursuant to Dakota County Policy and Procedures Manual Section 3102 (L), this position is designated as Safety Sensitive.

These examples do not include all possible tasks in this work and do not limit the assignment of related tasks in any position of this classification. Regular attendance according to the position's management approved work schedule is required for all positions.

1. Represents the Sheriff's Office in a positive, professional manner.
2. Builds and maintains positive working relationships.
3. Maintains standards of dress in accordance with policy and procedure.
4. Understands and complies with policy and procedure to include Sheriff's Office memorandums, directives and notices.
5. Stay current on policies and procedures relevant to assigned program area.
6. Book and release subjects accurately and completely.
7. Review electronic staffing schedule to ensure accuracy of individual schedule.
8. Submit requests for time off and overtime in accordance with policy.
9. Review electronic appointment scheduling software to ensure adequate coverage is available at the various locations.
10. Modify appointment scheduling software to account for holidays, trainings, staff shortages, or other times where the office maybe closed to outside appointments.
11. Demonstrate an in-depth knowledge of criminal history records, suspense records, booking records, court case structure, interstate probation transfers, predatory offender record transfers and the overall criminal justice process so issues or problems with records can be identified.
12. Trouble-shoot criminal history and/or booking records and identify how to best fix or update records to prevent or resolve suspense, and to ensure the accuracy of the information.
13. Understands the implications of modifying a subjects criminal history record and whether the issue is a local, state, or federal level charge.
14. Communicate with probation, investigations, outside agencies, and the courts to confirm and clarify critical information when necessary.
15. Review charges and arrests that occur within the jail to identify any cases in suspense.
16. Modify suspense tracking database, send letters, obtain fingerprints, request booking orders to manage the suspense process in Dakota County.
17. Able to determine the difference between public, private, and confidential information and when information can be disclosed for case resolution.
18. Obtain fingerprints for the county, vendors, and public as needed.
19. Update fingerprint records with suspense information and add outside agency suspense information upon request.
20. Maintain suspense tracking database to identify who must go through the booking process; communicate this information to court personnel as needed to ensure bookings take place.
21. Scan and index records/documents as needed for proper documentation.
22. Accurately complete any required documentation provided by the clients to identify the staff member, agency, and authority when providing fingerprints.
23. Correctly identify the subject of the fingerprints by seeking proper identification and/or conducting research to ensure the identity of the subject being fingerprinted is accurate.

• Ability to see, hear and remember facts and circumstances to write an accurate report of the facts.
• Ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing.
• Ability to deal with, coworkers and the public in a fair and respectful manner.
• Ability to solve varied and diverse problems that require deductive reasoning skills.
• Ability to work independently with little supervision, self- motivated.
• Considerable ability to work effectively while under stressful situations.
• Knowledge of State, County, and Federal regulations.
• Demonstrate knowledge of the applicant background check process, gun permit applications, court case structure, and criminal justice processes so that you can determine issues or problems with records and how to best handle the situation.

• Comprehensive and affordable medical, dental, vision, and other benefits
• Excellent work-life balance
• Generous paid time off (accrual rate starts at four weeks per year)
• Eleven paid holidays and one floating holiday each year
• Pension with a generous employer contribution
• Ability to work from home some of the time

• You submit an online application that includes supplemental questions
• We assign you a score based on your qualifications
• Top scoring candidates are referred to the hiring manager for interview consideration
• We conduct interviews and reference checks before extending an offer
• We extend an offer and conduct background checks