Senator Thomas Norton releases review of court interpreters services

10 Pages·1996·0.34 MB·English

by  Norton, Thomas C

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COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS
SENATE MAJORITY LEADER
STATE HOUSE. BOSTON 02133-1C53
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SENATOR THOMAS C. NORTON
First Bristol District ""6 Committee on Rules
Room 333 Committee on Steering and Policy
J J Committee on Administration
Tel. [phone] *
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"SENATOR THOMAS NORTON RELEASES
REVIEW OF COURT INTERPRETERS SERVICES"
February 13, 1996
On May 2, 1995, Sen. Thomas C. Norton (D-Fall River) directed the Senate Post Audit and
Oversight Bureau to conduct a review of the services provided by the Office Court Interpreters
Services (O.C.I.S.), and the court interpreting services provided by the Massachusetts
Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (MCDHH).
"Justices have to rely on foreign and sign language interpreters to communicate with
defendants, " said Senator Norton. "There are too many people appointing interpreters and using
different standards. This leads to a duplication of services. In some instances, the court cannot
be assured that the quality of interpretation is consistent.
The Bureau interviewed many interpreters (foreign and sign language), and contacted national
and state experts in the course of its research. Many interpreters also expressed concern about
the lack of timely payments. In fact, Senator Norton noted that delayed reimbursements for
interpreters has led to interpreters leaving the state.
A
Senator Norton today released a draft of the Bureau's review. list of the major findings and
recommendations is attached.
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FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
FINDINGS
The Bureau finds that there is a duplication of court interpreter services. There are two
offices essentially providing the same kind of services: the Office of Court Interpreter
Services (1986 Mass.Gen. L. ch. 221C) and a de facto office, known as the Superior
Court-Judicial Language Center.
The Judicial Language Center is not using the processes for hiring court interpreters as
provided by Massachusetts General Law Chapter 221C.
Free-lance foreign language and sign interpreters do not get paid on a regular basis.
The problem is two-fold: insufficient funding causing year-end budget deficiencies, and
delays in the processing of payment invoices.
During the last three years, O.C.I.S. halted training and examination for common and
rare languages because lack of funding. This inhibits the ability of the court system to
assure the quality and accuracy of the interpretation so critical to due process rights of
the non-English party.
There is a shortage of sign language interpreters trained to work in the legal system.
Judges often request that an individual sign language interpreter be available throughout
the continuation of a case. This advance booking of sign language interpreters creates
inefficiencies in scheduling whereby an interpreter may be unavailable for other
assignments, or may be underutilized in the course of a day.
Compensation for sign language court interpreters in Massachusetts is not comparable to
other states.
Court interpreters do not have identification cards.
There is no official directory of Commonwealth interpreters.

RECOMMENDATIONS
The Bureau recommends the elimination of the Judicial Language Center. Furthermore,
the Bureau proposes the creation of permanent positions in the Office of Court Interpreter
Services. The Bureau recommends replacing the current system of consultants with the
following positions: 1 Director, 4 Regional Supervisors, 1 Training Director, 1
Scheduling Assistant, 1 Accounting Assistant, 2 Administrative Assistants. The Bureau
recommends that O.C.I.S. gradually replace free-lance interpreters with full-time staff
interpreters. Furthermore, the Bureau recommends the creation of 1 part-time sign
language trainer and 12 part-time positions for sign language interpreters.
The Bureau recommends that the Chief Justice for Administration and Management take
appropriate measures to ensure that court interpreters are paid in a timely manner.
The Commonwealth should join the National Center for State Courts Consortium to
provide standardized testing for certification of court interpreters.
The Bureau recommends that stricter advance bookings be observed for sign language
interpreters.
Sign language interpreters should be compensated at rates comparable to other states.
The Bureau recommends that photo identifications be provided to all staff and free-lance
interpreters. The photo identification should include the field language of interpretation.
An updated roster of accredited Massachusetts court interpreters should be kept and made
available to publications in the same manner as are Official Court Reporters.
The O.C.I.S. Coordinator, with permission of the Chief Justice, should exempt certain
individuals who have worked with nationally recognized institutions, such as the Office
of Language Services of the United States Department of State or the Federal Courts
from the certification.

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