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Tuesday, April 10, 2007
Ind. Courts - More on "Court looks at translator rules "
Updating yesterday's ILB entry on the oral arguments set to be heard before the Indiana Supreme Court this Thursday in the case of Jesus Arrieta v. State, involving (as stated by the LCJ story) "a Clark County drug case [where] the Indiana Supreme Court will consider whether state courts must pay for translators to assist criminal defendants who don't understand English," Dionne Waugh of the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette writes today on how the situation is handled in Allen County:
Allen County uses foreign language interpreters daily in its court systems. Last year, the county spent $92,624 to pay for certified interpreters for both Circuit and Superior Court.That’s up from $80,692 in 2005 and $69,918 in 2004. That money comes from the county’s general fund, user fees and a $10,000 grant from the Indiana Supreme Court, according to Court Executive Jerry Noble.
Allen County has needed interpreters to speak Spanish, French, Arabic, Burmese, Vietnamese, Bosnian and even Mai Mai.
Last month, the court had to pay for two out-of-state Mai Mai interpreters, the native language of Somalia, to come to Fort Wayne for a scheduled three-day jury trial. The defendant pleaded guilty the day of trial.
Posted by Marcia Oddi on April 10, 2007 08:33 AM
Posted to Indiana Courts