Connect with us
[the_ad_placement id="manual-placement"] [the_ad_placement id="obituaries"]

News

22 new language interpreters recently earned court credentials

Published

on

an interpreter in a courtroom

JACKSON, Miss. – Twenty-two new language interpreters recently earned credentials to work in Mississippi courtrooms.

This record number of successful applicants has significantly increased the availability of credentialed interpreters in the state by nearly a third. Specifically, the newly credentialed interpreters include 19 Spanish speakers, two Portuguese speakers, and one Vietnamese speaker.

As a result, there are now 70 credentialed interpreters on the Mississippi Administrative Office of Courts (AOC) roster, up from 48. This roster now includes 55 Spanish-speaking interpreters, four who speak Portuguese, two each who speak Vietnamese, Arabic, and French, and one each who speak Mandarin Chinese, German, Hindi, Haitian Creole, and Yoruba and Pidgin English.

Record Turnout

The newly credentialed interpreters were part of a record turnout for an Ethics and Skill Building Seminar presented by the AOC on May 30-31 in Jackson. Notably, forty-one people attended the seminar. A legislative appropriation allowed the AOC Interpreter Credentialing Program to be offered at no cost to participants for the first time.

Deenie Miller, Director of Language Access, highlighted that offering the program at no cost significantly increased participation. Previously, the largest attendance at one of the seminars was 18 people.

“I am thrilled with the interest and excitement for the Court Interpreter Credentialing Program,” Miller said. “I am receiving phone calls and emails from bilingual individuals who are being told about our program and encouraged to apply and pursue certification.”

Courts shall be open to all people

Mississippi Court of Appeals Judge David N. McCarty spoke to the interpreter candidates on the first morning of the seminar, emphasizing the importance of language access. Judge McCarty said, “Our Constitution of 1890 guarantees that our courts shall be open to all people. As Mississippi grows more complex, the court system faces the challenge of ensuring we honor due process requirements. That’s why interpreters play such a vital role in our courts. Their meticulous work ensures every person has meaningful access to our court system.”

Recently, the 2023 Mississippi Legislature revised laws regarding language interpreters to provide broader language access assistance for people with limited English proficiency. The law mandates court appointment of a qualified interpreter in all cases, criminal and civil, at no cost to the limited English proficient participant, with the cost borne by the county or municipality. Additionally, the revised statutes clarify that limited English proficient individuals are entitled to use an interpreter in any instance arising out of or pertaining to their involvement in litigation. See Miss. Code Ann. Section 9-21-73 (4).

Right to an Interpreter

To improve awareness of their right to an interpreter, courthouses will post signs for limited English proficient people.Miller said, “One of the biggest projects has been getting signs translated for courthouses, courtrooms, and clerks’ offices. The signs have all been translated, and we are working on getting them printed for delivery.” The signs will include messages in Spanish, Vietnamese, Chinese, French, Arabic, Tagalog, German, Korean, and Gujarati.

Miller is also translating written materials used during court proceedings. She worked with the Mississippi Access to Justice Commission, the Mississippi Judicial College, the Public Defender’s Office, and the Attorney General’s Office to obtain pamphlets, forms, brochures, and sample forms for translation. “We have completed a sample guilty plea translated into Spanish, Vietnamese, Chinese, and Arabic,” she said. They have translated sample Justice Court criminal forms produced by the Mississippi Judicial College into Spanish and Vietnamese, the top two foreign languages spoken in Mississippi.

Additionally, work is underway to translate sample Municipal Court forms, domestic abuse protection forms, informational brochures, eviction sample forms, several criminal forms, and ‘know your rights’ documents into Spanish and Vietnamese.

See a typo? Report it here.
Continue Reading
Advertisement