KTIV NewsChannel 4 Sioux City IA: News, Weather and SportsSD Supreme Court group studying interpreters
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Associated Press - November 16, 2009 10:15 AM ET
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) - With judges seeing more people who speak little or no English, South Dakota's Supreme Court is looking at developing standards for courtroom interpreters.
Supreme Court attorney Greg Sattizahn said some defendants may not be able to understand court terms.
Minnehaha County's court administrator says statewide standards could hurt smaller counties that might not have the money to pay for them. Minnehaha County figures it spends about $85,000 a year on interpreters.
The court administrator for the 5th Circuit, Angie Goetz, says the courts in Brown, Day and Roberts counties use the Language Line telephone service. It charges by the minute for over-the-phone interpreters. Goetz said it has worked well so far, but it would not work for a full-length trial.
Information from: Argus Leader, http://www.argusleader.com
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