Volunteers: Recruiting, Screening, and Training
Screening
To ensure that crime victims are protected from revictimization, all prospective Good Samaritans volunteers must pass a criminal background check. Background checks can be performed by your partnering district attorney or law enforcement agency.
Volunteers should be screened for their interests, abilities, availability, and willingness to be trained. If a volunteer balks at investing time in training, is not available for significant periods of time, or refuses a criminal background check, he or she obviously is not right for the Good Samaritans program. It's better to know these things up front. Don't be afraid to tell people "No thanks!" if it is not a good fit.
Have the prospective volunteer fill out an application that asks pertinent questions and requires the volunteer to authorize the criminal background check. (See the sample volunteer application used by Mobile's Good Samaritans program.)
