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En Banc Order
Effective July 1, 2003
Judge |
Senior Legal Specialist (SLS)
Clerk/Judicial Administrator |
City Prosecutor |
Bailiff
Interpreter |
Costs
IT IS ORDERED THAT pursuant
to the authority established in L.R.S. 46:2370, L.R.S. 15:270(3), C.C.P. 192
and 192.1, and Title II, Section 12182 of the ADA, foreign and sign language
interpreters appointed by the Court to assist non-English speakers or deaf
or hearing impaired persons shall be compensated as follows: foreign
language interpreter-$65.00 per hour (one hour minimum); sign language
interpreter-$65.00 per hour (two hour minimum); plus mileage reimbursement
based on the current rate mandated by City Parish Guidelines.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED THAT
the following procedures are hereby established for the appointment of
foreign and sign language interpreters unless otherwise specifically ordered
by a judge.
Judge
It shall be the
responsibility of the judge to determine whether an interpreter shall be
appointed to assist an offender, witness or party at any stage of the
adjudication process.
Pursuant to Code of Evidence Art. 604, an interpreter is subject to the
provisions of the Code relating to qualification as an expert and the
administration of an oath or affirmation that he will make a true
translation.
Senior Legal Specialist (SLS)
If it is found that an
interpreter is necessary, it shall be the responsibility of the judges'
SLS for the respective division of court to make the proper minute entry
on the file and to immediately initiate the Interpreter Appointment
Invoice, Interpreter Appointment, and furnish the pertinent information in
Section 1(A). The SLS shall then file track the city court file to the
Administrative Office and deliver said file and form to said office. It
shall be the SLS's responsibility to repeat this process each time an
interpreter's appearance is rescheduled.
If the interpreter is present
at the time of the reassignment, the interpreter shall acknowledge notice of
reassignment by signing on the signature line provided in Section 1(B). The SLS shall give the Original Interpreter Appointment Invoice to the
interpreter and file the copy in the city court file.
Upon the interpreter making his/her presence known to the SLS, it shall be
the responsibility of the SLS to immediately initiate the Interpreter
Appointment Invoice, Interpreter Appointment, and log-in the interpreter by
entering the time in the proper blank. The SLS shall then sign the form
acknowledging said entry. The SLS shall also be responsible for logging the
interpreter out immediately upon release by the judge and shall again sign
the form acknowledging said entry. In The Event Of An Error In Completing
The Form, The SLS Shall Strike Through The Erroneous Information (NO
WHITE-OUTS ACCEPTED) and Enter The Correct Information And
Initial Same. The
SLS will then have the interpreter sign the invoice and enter his current
address. The copy of the form is to be given to the interpreter. Under No
Circumstance Is The Original Invoice To Be Given To The Interperter. The SLS shall then file track the city court file to the Administrative Office
and deliver said file WITH THE ORIGINAL INVOICE ATTACHED. It shall be
the SLS's responsibility to repeat this process each time an interpreter
appears in court.
Upon receipt of a copy of
the Direct Payment Voucher and invoice authorizing the payment of a
FOREIGN LANGUAGE interpreter fee, it shall be the responsibility of
the SLS to update the city court file to reflect the amount of FOREIGN
LANGUAGE interpreter fees paid by the court and to place the voucher
and invoice in the file. Upon a plea of guilty/conviction, the offender
is to be cast for all interpreter costs.
Probation
Officer/Court Employee/School Instructor (Designated Employee)
If it is determined that an
interpreter is necessary to assist an offender, the designated employee
shall immediately initiate the Interpreter Appointment Invoice, Interpreter
Appointment, and furnish the pertinent information in Section 1(A). The
designated employee shall then deliver said form to the Administrative
Office.
Upon obtaining administrative
office personnel's receipt for the Interpreter Appointment Invoice, the
designated employee will, if needed, obtain a photostatic copy of the form
for the department's offender file, and leave the original and file copy
with administrative office personnel for notice to interpreter and placement
in the city court file.
It shall be the
responsibility of the designated employee to repeat this process each time
an interpreter's appearance is rescheduled. In addition, if the interpreter
is present at the time of reassignment, the interpreter shall acknowledge
notice of reassignment by signing on the signature line provided in Section
1(B). The Original of Interpreter Appointment Invoice shall then be given
to the interpreter and the copy forwarded to the proper department for
inclusion in the city court file.
Upon the appearance of an
appointed interpreter, it shall be the responsibility of the designated
employee to initiate the Interpreter Appointment Invoice, Interpreter
Appointment, and log in the interpreter by entering the time in the
appropriate blank. The designated employee shall then sign the form
acknowledging said entry. The designated employee shall also be responsible
for logging the interpreter out immediately upon completion of the
offender's business and shall again sign the form acknowledging said entry. IN THE EVENT OF AN ERROR IN COMPLETING THE FORM, THE DESIGNATED EMPLOYEE
SHALL STRIKE THROUGH THE ERRONEOUS INFORMATION (NO WHITE-OUTS ACCEPTED) AND
ENTER THE CORRECT INFORMATION AND INITIAL SAME. The designated employee
will then have the interpreter sign the invoice and enter his current
address. The copy of the form is to be given to the interpreter. UNDER NO
CIRCUMSTANCE IS THE ORIGINAL INVOICE TO BE GIVEN TO THE INTERPRETER. The
designated employee will then deliver the ORIGINAL INVOICE to the
Administrative Office and obtain, if needed, a photostatic copy for the
offender's file. It shall be the responsibility of the designated employee
to repeat this process each time an interpreter's appearance is
rescheduled. If the designated employee is a school instructor, the
original invoice is to be delivered to the Court Services Division with the
roster of school attendees and the Court Services employee shall then
deliver to the Administrative Office.
Clerk/Judicial Administrator's Office
It shall be the
responsibility of the personnel of the office of the Clerk/Judicial
Administrator to identify and contact a qualified interpreter suited to
the case. To aid in this process, administrative office personnel will
maintain a list of approved interpreters. In an instance when the type of
interpreter needed is not on the list, administrative office personnel
will contact the appropriate agency or individual to locate the
appropriate interpreter.
Upon the interpreter's
acceptance of the appointment, administrative office personnel shall
complete Section 2 of the Interpreter Appointment Invoice. The Original of
said form shall be mailed to the interpreter. The copy of the form is to be
placed inside of the city court file, the file is to be file tracked to the
proper department and then delivered to that department. If needed, a
photostatic copy may be retained in the Administrative Office.
Upon receipt of a properly
completed and transmitted ORIGINAL Interpreter Appointment Invoice,
Interpreter Appointment, (NO WHITE-OUTS ACCEPTED) administrative office
personnel shall generate a Payment Voucher authorizing payment of said
invoice from the court's general fund budget, object 645110, court costs and
filing fees. A copy of the voucher authorizing payment of a foreign
language interpreter and the invoice are to be sent to the proper SLS
for the purpose of updating the city court file with the amount of
interpreter fees to date for future reimbursement of said fees in the event
of a plea of guilty/conviction and for audit purposes. The voucher
authorizing payment of a sign language interpreter is to be sent to the
proper SLS for inclusion in the city court file for audit purposes.
In the instance when the Interpreter Appointment and/or Interpreter
Appointment Invoice is received from the Probation Division or the Court
Services Division, administrative office personnel shall be responsible for
forwarding the appropriate copy(ies) to the proper division of court for
inclusion in the city court file. Personnel in the appropriate division of
court will be responsible for making the proper minute entry and inserting
the form(s) in the city court file.
City Prosecutor
It shall be the
responsibility of the City Prosecutor to immediately bring to the
attention of the judge any case(s) on the docket wherein the file
indicates that an interpreter has been appointed or is needed.
Bailiff
It shall be the
responsibility of the bailiff to immediately acknowledge the presence of
an interpreter and to direct the interpreter to the proper SLS to be
logged-in.
Interpreter
Pursuant to Code of
Evidence Art. 604, an interpreter is subject to the provisions of the Code
relating to qualification as an expert and the administration of an oath
or affirmation that he will make a true translation.
It shall be the
responsibility of the interpreter, upon arrival at court, to immediately make
his/her presence known to the SLS/probation officer/designated employee for
the purpose of logging-in on the Interpreter Appointment Invoice.
The interpreter shall remain available to interpret in a given matter
until he/she is released by the judge/probation officer/designated
employee.
The court has adopted the following principles on the role of the
Interpreter:
“Interpreters render
everything said in court in the source language into the target language
accurately, without omissions, without additions, without any changes in
style or register and with as little delay or interference in the routine
pace of court proceedings as possible. In other words, the interpreter will
reflect the emotions of speaker and should not simplify questions or
statements for the non-English speaker – even if they believe the person
doesn’t understand.
As an officer of the
court, the interpreter remains impartial. The interpreter is not a liaison
and should not carry on unnecessary discussions with the attorneys, parties,
or witnesses–either inside or outside the courtroom.
The interpreter will
refer to himself or herself as “the interpreter” when addressing the court
to avoid confusion on the record.” For example, “The interpreter did not
hear the question.”
The
interpreter is obligated to interrupt the proceeding by signaling the court
when unable to understand or hear a word or phrase. Likewise, if an error
in interpreting is caught by the interpreter, the interpreter should explain
the problem to the attorneys and the judge.
The interpreter should
place himself or herself so he/she can see and hear the attorneys and the
witness. If the interpreter has difficulty hearing because of the noise
level, he/she should inform the court, and the judge may order the attorneys
to speak one at a time.
In other words, the
interpreter places the non-English speaking person on the same level as the
English speaking person, enabling the non-English speaking person to hear
all that is said so he/she can effectively participate.”
(Source: “Court Interpreting:
View from the Bench,”
Missouri Court Personnel Newsletter, Winter 2002)
Costs
Pursuant to Title II,
Section 12182 of the ADA and C.C.P. 192.1, the Court shall bear the costs
for the sign language interpreter for the deaf or hearing impaired.
Pursuant to C.C.P. 192, the
costs of services of a foreign language interpreter in a civil matter shall
be taxed as costs of court, and the judge is allowed to determine how these
costs will be allocated between the two parties.
Pursuant to C.Cr.P. Art. 887,
a defendant found guilty or who pleads guilty to a criminal/traffic matter,
and who requires the need of a foreign language interpreter, shall be cast
for all costs associated with the appointment of the foreign language
interpreter. Therefore, in order for the court to be reimbursed for foreign
language interpreter fees, it is critical that the total costs expended for
foreign language interpreter services be reflected in the court's file at
the time of sentencing.
IT IS
ORDERED THAT the foregoing shall supersede the En Banc Order of March 18,
1998, and shall remain in effect until superseded or amended by further
order of this Court.
BATON
ROUGE, LOUISIANA, this ________ day of _______________________, 20_____.
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