Colleagues,
For those of you following the DOJ investigation of Sheriff Joe Arpaio and the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office (MCSO), here is a link to the press release and to the findings letter. Widespread constitutional and Title VI violations were found, including discriminatory treatment of limited and non-English speaking Latino inmates (punishing them and denying critical services).
Just as important, Thomas Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the DOJ Civil Rights Division contends that the investigation makes clear that “MCSO’s systematic disregard for basic constitutional protections has created a wall of distrust between the sheriff’s office and large segments of the community, which dramatically compromises the ability to protect and serve the people... the problems are deeply rooted in MCSO’s culture, and are compounded by MCSO’s penchant for retaliation against individuals who speak out.”
In the work that I do with Latino criminal defendants, I have seen the lack of accommodations provided to those who are not proficient in English or who do not speak English at all and have testified several times as to the lack of appropriate interpreter services provided to suspects, defendants, victims, witnesses, juveniles and their parents and the tremendous harm it causes in terms of their access to justice.
Because I work on a national level, I also know that Maricopa County is not the only perpetrator of this kind of treatment and hope that the DOJ continues investigating other jurisdictions and states as well.
Best, Roseann
Dr. Roseann D. Gonzalez
Director, National Center for Interpretation Testing, Research & Policy
