Information For Clients
All defendants who are assigned by Fairfax County General District Court to Volunteer Fairfax must enroll in the Alternative Community Service (ACS) Program. Volunteer Fairfax is NOT an office of the Fairfax County Judicial System. Therefore, it is the responsibility of the client to report any changes to a case made after the initial referral to the ACS office.
*IMPORTANT*
Beginning February 1, 2010, Volunteer Fairfax will begin charging a $10 missed appointment fee for Alternative Community Service Clients, both pre-trail and court referred, for each missed intake appointment unless the client calls at least 24 hours in advance of their appointment to reschedule or if they are more than 15 minutes late for their scheduled appointment in which case their appointment will need to be rescheduled. If by the third appointment the client does not show or is more than 15 minutes late, Volunteer Fairfax reserves the right to refer the case back to the referring entity.
In the case that a client is re-referred to Volunteer Fairfax, any previous missed appointment fees will be applied to the base fee.
The purpose of adding the missed appointment fee is to encourage clients to attend their appointments and shorten the wait time between the client’s referral date and the date of the intake appointment. This will allow clients to have a larger window of opportunity in which to complete their court mandated community service hours.
The Process
Guidelines
Recording the Hours
Completion/Termination of Cases
Finding your own community service placement
Completing Service Outside of Fairfax
Pretrial Clients
The Process
All clients MUST call the ACS office (703-246-3893) within two weeks of their initial court date to schedule an intake appointment. All phone messages MUST include a name and phone number, and will be returned within two business days. Appointments may only be rescheduled twice before the case is terminated and sent back to court. Volunteer Fairfax does not accept walk-in appointments. For directions to Volunteer Fairfax, please click here. At the appointment, clients are placed at an agency where they can do hours based on their availability and location. Clients are permitted to work at a charitable or government agency not already in Volunteer Fairfax's database, but only with prior approval of the ACS coordinator. Click here for guidelines and required documentation.
Volunteer Fairfax cannot place minors. If you have been mandated by the court to complete community service hours and are under the age of 18, please contact the Fairfax County Juvenile and Domestic Court Clerk’s Office at 703-279-6323 for assistance.
Volunteer Fairfax cannot accept the following types of charges:
- Violent (ex: assault, assault and battery)
- Sexual (ex: solicitation of a prostitute)
- Concealed weapons
If you are not sure whether or not Volunteer Fairfax can assist with your community service, please call to inquire at 703-246-3893.
Guidelines
- Clients are required to complete six hours of community service per week or 24 hours per month.
- Clients must contact their assigned agency within seven days of the interview.
- Clients must complete the required hours by a completion date set by the ACS coordinator. This date may differ from the client's next court date.
- Clients must inform the ACS Coordinator immediately upon completing hours. Failure to inform Volunteer Fairfax will result in immediate termination of the case and criminal conviction.
- Clients must contact the ACS office upon completion of hours.
- Clients must pay a non-refundable $70 administrative fee at the time of the intake appointment, OR within two weeks. Volunteer Fairfax accepts cash or money order ONLY. Personal checks and credit card payments are NOT accepted. Failure to pay the $70 fee will result in termination of the case regardless of the client's successful completion of hours.
Recording the Hours
Volunteer Fairfax provides the agency directly with a customized time sheet. It is the client's responsibility to ensure that hours are recorded on Volunteer Fairfax's timesheet, including a mandatory supervisor's signature after EVERY SHIFT WORKED. At no time should the client have Volunteer Fairfax's timesheet in his or her possession. Recording of hours must occur at the completion of service shifts and not prior.
Completion/Termination of Cases
Volunteer Fairfax processes completed or terminated cases directly with the referring entity. This process takes a minimum of one week. Cases are terminated TWO WEEKS before the next court date for the following reasons:
- Failure to contact Volunteer Fairfax for placement
- Failure to report completion of hours
- Failure to pay the $70 fee
If a client is granted a continuance by the court, he or she MUST notify the ACS office IMMEDIATELY. Cases remain terminated until Volunteer Fairfax is notified otherwise.
Finding your own community service placement
Clients are permitted to work for any nonprofit, religious or governmental agency not listed in Volunteer Fairfax's database. Under no circumstances will hours done at a for-profit organization or private individual be accepted. All community service placements must be approved in advance by the ACS office. Click here for guidelines and required documentation.
Completing Service Outside of Fairfax
Volunteer Fairfax does not transfer community service cases. Clients doing hours outside of Fairfax must find their own placement and provide the required documentation to Volunteer Fairfax before beginning hours. Volunteer Fairfax will report hours to the referring agency regardless of where hours are done. Click here for guidelines and required documentation.
Pretrial Clients
Clients referred by their attorneys must also make an appointment for an intake interview. Pretrial clients are given until two days before their court date to complete as many hours as possible. Volunteer Fairfax files completion letters directly with the client's attorney. The administrative fee for pretrial clients is $75 because of the expedited process. To set up an appointment, please call 703-246-3893.
For more information, e-mail Janet Davison, or call 703-246-3893.
