NCJ Number
168149
Date Published
1996
Length
2 pages
Annotation
The Federal Court Interpreter Certification Project, directed by University of Arizona professor Roseann Duenas Gonzalez, provides Federal credentials to qualified individuals to serve as interpreters for Navajos who are brought before Federal courts.
Abstract
For many Navajos who end up in U.S. courts, the language used in the court system has no equivalent in their native language. It is essential that they have court interpreters whose credentials are backed by the Federal Government. The Federal Court Interpreter Certification Project provides these credentials to qualified individuals. Although these credentials have been provided only to nine Navajos nationwide, this number is likely to increase now that Gonzalez has formed the first interpreter training institute in the Navajo language. The week- long intensive program met for the first time last month. Thirty Navajos from New Mexico and Arizona attended the seminar's 10- hour daily session, learning how to translate the legal intricacies of subjects that range from drunken driving to sexual abuse. Roselyn Johnson, a Navajo from the University of New Mexico's court advocate program, attended the seminar even though she speaks fluent Navajo. She recognizes her need to learn the Navajo legal language, which is a specialized formal use of the language. Translation must be accurate so the client can fully participate in court proceedings.