Court-Ordered Volunteers

If you have court-ordered community service hours to complete, you may be able to find opportunities through HandsOn San Diego.

Please note: Individuals who have been convicted of or charged with any crime involving or relating to invoking fear in another person and any form of harassment or assault (including but not limited to stalking, assault, battery, domestic violence, child abuse and neglect, child pornography, child abduction, online harassment, or any sexual offense) are NOT permitted to register on this site.

If you're unsure your offense is appropriate, email us before you create an account at info@handsonsandiego.org. We reserve the right to turn away anyone from using our site. 
 

How to Get Started

Step 1: Check out our Calendar

 Check out our volunteer opportunity calendar to make sure there are enough projects that work for your schedule and location before creating an account. Be sure to use the "Court-Ordered Volunteers" filter to make sure you're only viewing appropriate opportunities (instructions in Step 4).

Projects are subject to cancellation (especially during poor weather conditions) so we recommend getting started early on fulfilling your requirements. Court-ordered volunteers are not eligible for remote/virtual volunteer opportunities because supervision of their hours cannot be provided.

Step 2: Create an account

Create an account on our site. We have a $65 mandatory fee for court-ordered volunteers due to the additional staff time it requires. We cannot waive this fee. This is an added service we provide and we want to ensure its sustainability. Pay the fee by selecting the individual membership during registration. Register HERE. 

Step 3: Notify Us

By HandsOn policy, you must notify us after you create an account, but before you sign up for HandsOn managed projects.

Email us at info@handsonsandiego.org to let us know that you have court-ordered community service hours to complete and include:

1. Full name
2. Number of hours you need to serve
3. Nature of your offense (theft, traffic violation, DUI, etc.)
4. Deadline to complete hours
5. Case number (if provided by the court)

Step 4: Find Volunteer Opportunities

Follow these instructions to find volunteer opportunities where court-ordered volunteers are permitted. We reserve the right to omit hours served at projects inappropriate for court-ordered volunteers in your verification letter.

Use this Filtered Search for Court-Ordered Volunteers or do your own search through our Calendar: 

• Click the plus sign (+) next to "Basic Search and Search Options" above the calendar
• Click "Additional Filters" at the bottom of that box
• The under "Appropriate For," check the box for "Court-Ordered Volunteers"
• Select any other filters you wish to search by
• Click "Refine"

Step 5: Sign Up & Volunteer

Sign up for projects that come up as appropriate for "Court-Ordered Volunteers" based on your interests and schedule. 

The information you need to attend each of the projects (ex. location) will be sent in a confirmation email immediately after you sign up. If you do not see an email, please check your spam box before emailing our team. You must sign up for our volunteer opportunities prior to attending. Self reported hours or hours served without signing up in advance will not be accepted. 

Step 6: Request a Verification Letter

All of our projects are managed by either a Volunteer Leader or the site's volunteer coordinator. They check-in all of the volunteers and verify your hours in our system so it shows up for you on the "My Account" tab. Once you have completed all the hours you needed with HandsOn San Diego, email us at info@handsonsandiego.org and our staff will then be able to write a verification of hours letter. This letter by default is emailed to you on our letterhead with our Tax ID number, your name, the number of hours you completed, and a signature from the department head on it. If your case number needs to be included, please include it in your email. We do not submit your letter to the court on your behalf. 

Please Note: HandsOn San Diego is not able to verify any hours for projects that are not managed by us. If you have signed up to attend a HandsOn San Diego project, here is a community service log you can use as back-up documentation to help verify and track your hours. Last minute requests for court-ordered volunteer opportunities will not be given any higher priority. 

If you cannot attend a project, please click "Remove Me" next to the project in your Upcoming Opportunities. Court-ordered volunteers who no-show more than 3 projects within a month will have their account made inactive.

VolunBEERS is not a court-ordered allowed project. Court-ordered volunteers cannot sign up for this project and will not have their hours verified if they do attend.

Email info@handsonsandiego.org at least 4-5 business days in advance to request a verification of hours letter.