EVERETT — The legalese, stacks of paperwork and courtroom procedures all can be a complicated maze to maneuver for anyone who steps into a courthouse.
The confusion is compounded for people whose English skills are limited.
“They don’t even see a sign that tells them where to go for help,” said Bob Terwilliger, court administrator for Snohomish County Superior and Juvenile Courts.
That’s soon to change. The county’s courts and clerk’s office teamed up to reach out to people who come into the legal system and don’t understand or speak English. The partnership, the first among the county’s trial courts, is part of a statewide effort to provide more thorough interpreter services and relieve jurisdictions from bearing the costs alone.
Last year, legislators provided $2 million to help courts pay for interpreter services and create a language assistance program. The money is being considered the initial step toward the state picking up part of the tab for interpreters used during trial court proceedings. Eventually court officials would like to see the state pay for half the services.
Last year Snohomish County courts spent about $600,000 on interpreter services. That includes traffic infractions in municipal and district courts and felony criminal cases in Superior Court. Nearly half of the amount was used by the county’s four district courts, which handle a bulk of the misdemeanor cases, such as driving with a suspended license.
“The burden is on local jurisdictions. We have to pay for those services. We don’t have any other options. We can’t say we’re overbudget and not provide interpreters,” said Paulette Revoir, assistant director for Snohomish County District Court.
The law guarantees people the right to have an interpreter so they can understand trail court proceedings. In Snohomish County the most commonly needed interpreters are for people who speak Spanish, Korean, Russian, Vietnamese and Chinese, court officials said.
The county requested about $180,000 from the state. The courts were given $43,000.
In order to receive state money, the county had to create a language assistance program. The county’s legal system is among a group of courts selected to take part in the pilot project to determine if these kinds of programs can help nonnative English speakers navigate the legal system.
By teaming up, court officials believe they’ll be able to save money and provide better assistance.
As part of the program, the courts will use computer software to schedule court interpreters more efficiently among all the courts. They hope that will cut costs and limit the number of delays because of problems with interpreter services.
Staff will have access to language telephone lines with on-call interpreters to provide basic assistance. The courts will install signs in multiple languages to direct people to help.
Often people end up in the clerk’s office looking for assistance because there aren’t signs to tell them where to go, Snohomish County Chief Deputy Clerk Kathleen Gunn said.
Court forms and the court’s Web sites also are being translated into the five non-English languages most often encountered. Nearly 200 court and clerk employees last week and Monday received training to provide better customer service to people with limited English skills. They learned about body language and customs from other cultures.
“It’s really about understanding so we can provide better access to justice for these folks,” Revoir said.
Reporter Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463 or hefley@heraldnet.com.
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