New Mexico Court Rules Non-English Speaking Citizens Can Serve On Juries

www.thegatewaypundit.com...

The New Mexico Supreme Court is cautioning trial courts and lawyers that citizens who don’t speak English have the right to serve on juries.

The court issued the admonition in a ruling that upholds an Albuquerque man’s convictions for murder and other crimes in the bludgeoning death of his girlfriend and a subsequent armed robbery and stabbing.

Michael Samora’s appeal argued that his convictions should be reversed because a Bernalillo County judge excused a Spanish-speaking prospective juror who had trouble understanding English.

How can you fully understand what is going on even with an interpreter? Does the state now need to put in a UN style translation system with headphones to conduct business? If I was getting tried I would want to know that all of the jurors understood the what was going on and could actually understand my defense .....

However, I can see both sides here ... that citizens should not be excluded from the jury process....

Also in my area the number of non-English speakers are few while I could see in NM that there would be many more that close to the border.

What do you think ATS? good or bad?

reply to post by fnpmitchreturns


Jury by your peers.

How can you get that, if they don't understand the language? I don't think that is a good idea. Even with a translator, can't the whole meaning of something be changed, if one word is misinterpreted?

Okay, cool.... Now New Mexico is primarily Spanish for a 2nd language, but we don't want to assume this is racist...right?

So where are the translators for Swahili, Russian, Mandarin Chinese, Japanese, French, German and the other index languages of the world?

...Or golly gee whiz.. we could be like EVERY OTHER NATION on the planet and have the official business of Government and state generally conducted in one language. Of course.. we might hurt the feelings of illegal/criminal immigrants ...so we can't possibly have common sense in English speaking Court Rooms..can we?

I swear to God, if I ever have reason to be in a New Mexico court, I am going to demand my proceedings be in some wacky friggen language I'll spend the months to learn. After all, it's America. I can have it *MY WAY* and screw every other man, woman and child in the nation because society says we're each THAT special!

Where does the lunacy end? Jurors who don't speak English? How exactly is that going to work? How's the court reporter going to record? In English AND Spanish?

The inmates are running the asylum.

Originally posted by suz62
Where does the lunacy end? Jurors who don't speak English? How exactly is that going to work? How's the court reporter going to record? In English AND Spanish?

The inmates are running the asylum.

edit on 8/14/2013 by suz62 because: (no reason given)

I believe hispanics and even asians will soon outnumber all of you "whites"
SOURCE

so start learning some ESPANOL now chingon.

reply to post by resoe26

I believe hispanics and even asians will soon outnumber all of you "whites"
SOURCE

so start learning some ESPANOL now chingon.

EL DIABLO MI LOCO~ I've been saying this to many of my constituants. Whites are the new Minority. Take a look around folks. If you don't smell the Ethnic food, they have a pill that will help your nose clear up and give you a heart attack and anal bleeding...

Hey we have a deaf interpretor, a spanish interpretor... I'm with Wrabbit where are all the others??? Heck you won't even be able to hear the deliberations due to all the interpretors doing there job.... Sounds more like a 3 ring circus than a Judge and Jury.

New Mexico.... All I think of is Breaking Bad..... Ohhhh Walt~

This is not new. The state is bilingual according to its 1912 Constitution. Laws are in English and Spanish. Of course the fact that New Mexicos roots are Spanish and Mexican as its culture and most of its people it would be stupid to not do this. I guess people forget that a big chunk of the US was not settled by white english speaking peoples.

Gee, no racism here.

Right on my Jury summons for California one of the "not qualified" options is......

B. I do not have sufficient Knowledge of the English language.

I'm guessing NM may have the same? Most people try to get out of Jury Duty, i'm guessing if that option is available on NM Jury Summons, it would get used quite a lot.

Language translation isn't perfect.

One of the difficulties with translation is that you can no longer match the facial expression to the word being spoken. If you, as a juror, believe that part of the spoken sentence has questionable believability, based on a quick glance or grimace, you can't tell which part was the suspicious one.

reply to post by fnpmitchreturns


BAD. Anyone with such a jury should be able to call a mistrial, because people that can't even understand the language are not their peers, and fairness isn't possible. Unless ALL in the courtroom, every attorney, every clerk, the judge, the accused, and the jury, spoke this other language, they cannot know if an interpreter is honest of accurate. This is not a good idea, and I don't see how it's even legal.

Originally posted by fnpmitchreturns
However, I can see both sides here ... that citizens should not be excluded from the jury process....

I'm baffled. You see both sides? Perhaps you see both sides to the Tower of Babel?

Being a functioning citizen means you assimilate. If you don't speak and clearly understand the native language, how can you expect to be of any use whatsoever? Political correctness has gone totally insane.

If I move to Ecuador or Uruguay, my first order of business will be to learn the lingo, customs ... the culture.

reply to post by fnpmitchreturns


what.. if the defendant.. and plantif.. don't speak english either and the judge is bilingual as the lawyers..

ever think of that??

I am not sure what the language problem is... as i have needed to learn other languages i have adapted.. im up to four..