Miss-Delectable
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Judicial system doesn't meet needs of deaf, protesters say | Chron.com - Houston Chronicle
About 50 deaf people and advocates protested in front of the Brazoria County Courthouse on Thursday, saying that deaf people are often not provided sign-language interpreters when they are arrested or appear in court.
"Communication access now!" and "deaf power!" they shouted, some with their voice, others in sign language.
The protest was sparked by an incident in Alvin, but those at the rally said the lack of sign-language translators for deaf people is a problem across the state.
Using sign language, Amber DeLeon, 19, said she was crying when she called 911 after being hit by her brother during an argument in April. Unable to speak, she hung up the phone.
When Alvin police arrived, she said she tried to communicate with them and then was amazed when she, and not her brother, was arrested.
She said she had a body-cavity search by a male officer, was put in a cell in Alvin and later at the Brazoria County Detention Center without ever knowing what was happening.
She said she spent several days in jail not knowing why she was there or what she was charged with.
Alvin Police Chief Mike Merkel, who was not at the protest, said DeLeon was arrested on an assault charge after police found her brother had suffered two stab wounds and he, their mother and another witness said she had been the attacker. The charge was later dropped because her brother decided not to pursue the matter.
Merkel said Alvin police have arrested DeLeon six times in the past year on various charges and she has been very combative with police.
He said a male officer never did a cavity search, and no such search was conducted during the incident.
One Alvin jailer and another officer are fluent in sign language, but DeLeon usually refuses to communicate with them, Merkel said.
DeLeon said the officers sometimes attempt to speak to her in sign language, but she has a very difficult time understanding what they are saying.
"There's a lack of knowledge," Brian Determan of Houston said through an interpreter. "There's a lack of aware- ness."
He said many deaf people are frustrated when they try to deal with police or the courts because they can't understand what the police are saying and the police can't understand them.
Detra Stewart, a translator, said federal law mandates that translators be made available for deaf people who are arrested, but often no translator is called. "They often don't understand why they are arrested," Stewart said.
Archia Williams of Houston said he had a similar experience recently in Fort Bend County on charges of theft by check.
"I'm an innocent man," Williams said, "but they wouldn't let me talk to anybody and wouldn't get me a translator so I could tell what was going on."
Stewart said the protest was not intended to debate the merits of any criminal case but to point out the recurrent problem of deaf people having little access to translators.
Angleton Police Chief David Ashburn told the protesters that their demonstration will help police agencies be aware of the problem.
About 50 deaf people and advocates protested in front of the Brazoria County Courthouse on Thursday, saying that deaf people are often not provided sign-language interpreters when they are arrested or appear in court.
"Communication access now!" and "deaf power!" they shouted, some with their voice, others in sign language.
The protest was sparked by an incident in Alvin, but those at the rally said the lack of sign-language translators for deaf people is a problem across the state.
Using sign language, Amber DeLeon, 19, said she was crying when she called 911 after being hit by her brother during an argument in April. Unable to speak, she hung up the phone.
When Alvin police arrived, she said she tried to communicate with them and then was amazed when she, and not her brother, was arrested.
She said she had a body-cavity search by a male officer, was put in a cell in Alvin and later at the Brazoria County Detention Center without ever knowing what was happening.
She said she spent several days in jail not knowing why she was there or what she was charged with.
Alvin Police Chief Mike Merkel, who was not at the protest, said DeLeon was arrested on an assault charge after police found her brother had suffered two stab wounds and he, their mother and another witness said she had been the attacker. The charge was later dropped because her brother decided not to pursue the matter.
Merkel said Alvin police have arrested DeLeon six times in the past year on various charges and she has been very combative with police.
He said a male officer never did a cavity search, and no such search was conducted during the incident.
One Alvin jailer and another officer are fluent in sign language, but DeLeon usually refuses to communicate with them, Merkel said.
DeLeon said the officers sometimes attempt to speak to her in sign language, but she has a very difficult time understanding what they are saying.
"There's a lack of knowledge," Brian Determan of Houston said through an interpreter. "There's a lack of aware- ness."
He said many deaf people are frustrated when they try to deal with police or the courts because they can't understand what the police are saying and the police can't understand them.
Detra Stewart, a translator, said federal law mandates that translators be made available for deaf people who are arrested, but often no translator is called. "They often don't understand why they are arrested," Stewart said.
Archia Williams of Houston said he had a similar experience recently in Fort Bend County on charges of theft by check.
"I'm an innocent man," Williams said, "but they wouldn't let me talk to anybody and wouldn't get me a translator so I could tell what was going on."
Stewart said the protest was not intended to debate the merits of any criminal case but to point out the recurrent problem of deaf people having little access to translators.
Angleton Police Chief David Ashburn told the protesters that their demonstration will help police agencies be aware of the problem.