NJ Supreme Court: Suspects must be informed in native language

[Liability]

I have no problem with this. Simple. All LEO have mobile internet access now, bring up the required screen point and tell them to read. If they refuse to read, that's implied consent same as if you refuse the breathalyzer off to jail with you.

Unless they are illiterate, too.

Pictograms

This could get complicated!

 

[Gremlin-USA]

Anyone who passed their driver's test, should know about informed consent. The cops should not have to "educate them".

My question, if they passed a Driving test in the US, which means they took the test in English (or should have), why cannot they be asked to take a breathalyzer or any other question or lawful command in English?

Tourist I can understand driving and not knowing English, but if you live here long enough to get a DL, I mean if I moved to China, I would learn Chinese so I could read the street signs and understand when someone yells BRIDGE OUT AHEAD, so I would not keep going and get killed!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


.

 

[chanel]

NJ gives the test in several languages and I believe an interpreter must be offered if its a different one. In that case, I don't think they even have to know how to read.

Our tax dollars at work.

Time to make English our official language.

 

[RetiredGySgt]

New Jersey's Supreme Court ruled today that police must inform drunken driving suspects in their native language that they are legally required to take a Breathalyzer test.

The 4 to 3 decision written by Chief Justice Stuart Rabner, stemmed from the case of German Marquez, who was charged with being driving drunk when he rear-ended another car near a Plainfield intersection on Sept. 20, 2007.

Marquez, who speaks only Spanish, did not understand an officer’s instructions in English that he was required by state law to take a breath test to determine if he was intoxicated, his lawyer said.

Marquez’s conviction for drunken driving remains intact after the Supreme Court decision. But his conviction for refusing to take a breath test was vacated.
The majority decision acknowledged that the Attorney General’s office has already moved to translate instructions about the test into other languages.

In April, the state recorded them in 10 languages -- Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Russian, Portuguese, and Spanish -- and posted the recordings on a state website, where police can play them for suspects before breath tests.

Anyone who passed their driver's test, should know about informed consent. The cops should not have to "educate them".

How will this work? Drunk all over the road, gets pulled over, cop must find a computer to translate instructions... None available? System down? Speak Farsi? " Then go ahead fella. Kill someone. " Unfrickenbelievable. Our tax dollars at work.

This is why we should have a National Language.

 

[George Costanza]

New Jersey's Supreme Court ruled today that police must inform drunken driving suspects in their native language that they are legally required to take a Breathalyzer test.

The 4 to 3 decision written by Chief Justice Stuart Rabner, stemmed from the case of German Marquez, who was charged with being driving drunk when he rear-ended another car near a Plainfield intersection on Sept. 20, 2007.

Marquez, who speaks only Spanish, did not understand an officer’s instructions in English that he was required by state law to take a breath test to determine if he was intoxicated, his lawyer said.

Marquez’s conviction for drunken driving remains intact after the Supreme Court decision. But his conviction for refusing to take a breath test was vacated.
The majority decision acknowledged that the Attorney General’s office has already moved to translate instructions about the test into other languages.

In April, the state recorded them in 10 languages -- Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Russian, Portuguese, and Spanish -- and posted the recordings on a state website, where police can play them for suspects before breath tests.

Anyone who passed their driver's test, should know about informed consent. The cops should not have to "educate them".

How will this work? Drunk all over the road, gets pulled over, cop must find a computer to translate instructions... None available? System down? Speak Farsi? " Then go ahead fella. Kill someone. " Unfrickenbelievable. Our tax dollars at work.

A number of centuries ago, the Emperor put all of the laws out in public for everyone to see, so that no one could claim ignorance of the law. The only problem was, he put the laws on tablets which were up on posts that were so high, no one could read the text of the laws. (This is a true story.)

Your outrage at the requirement that suspects be talked to by police in their own language puts me in mind of the laws stuck up on high posts so that no one could read them.

Why don't we just do away with the entire criminal justice system and simply lock up and/or execute all the bad guys? Life would be so much SIMPLER, then, wouldn't it?

 

[George Costanza]

NJ gives the test in several languages and I believe an interpreter must be offered if its a different one. In that case, I don't think they even have to know how to read.

Our tax dollars at work.

Time to make English our official language.

That's right. Let's see - how would that work in a criminal court . . .

A defendant who does not speak English is charged with murder. He is not entitled to a translator during the trial. He must testify in his native language. No one in the jury understands his native language. He cannot understand anything that goes on during the trial.

Brilliant. But, hey! He got himself arrested, didn't he? And he hasn't taken the trouble to learn our "official language." So SCREW HIM, right?

 

[RetiredGySgt]

NJ gives the test in several languages and I believe an interpreter must be offered if its a different one. In that case, I don't think they even have to know how to read.

Our tax dollars at work.

Time to make English our official language.

That's right. Let's see - how would that work in a criminal court . . .

A defendant who does not speak English is charged with murder. He is not entitled to a translator during the trial. He must testify in his native language. No one in the jury understands his native language. He cannot understand anything that goes on during the trial.

Brilliant. But, hey! He got himself arrested, didn't he? And he hasn't taken the trouble to learn our "official language." So SCREW HIM, right?

Sounds good to me. You want to LIVE here? Learn the fucking language.

 

[bodecea]

I have no problem with this. Simple. All LEO have mobile internet access now, bring up the required screen point and tell them to read. If they refuse to read, that's implied consent same as if you refuse the breathalyzer off to jail with you.

Cause everyone knows how to read.

 

[George Costanza]

NJ gives the test in several languages and I believe an interpreter must be offered if its a different one. In that case, I don't think they even have to know how to read.

Our tax dollars at work.

Time to make English our official language.

That's right. Let's see - how would that work in a criminal court . . .

A defendant who does not speak English is charged with murder. He is not entitled to a translator during the trial. He must testify in his native language. No one in the jury understands his native language. He cannot understand anything that goes on during the trial.

Brilliant. But, hey! He got himself arrested, didn't he? And he hasn't taken the trouble to learn our "official language." So SCREW HIM, right?

Sounds good to me. You want to LIVE here? Learn the fucking language.

Another compassionate conservative heard from . . .

 

[chanel]

A driver's license is not a right. And where does it end? "Get out of the car sir." "Drop the gun sir" Shall they input that into their PDA's too just in case the guy doesn't understand?

Remember this case?

ROCKVILLE, Md. — The prosecutor in the case of a Liberian native charged with repeatedly raping and molesting a 7-year-old girl said Monday that he is filing an appeal of a controversial judge's ruling that dismissed all charges because an interpreter who spoke the suspect's rare West African dialect could not be found.

Montgomery County State's Attorney John McCarthy called the ruling last Tuesday by Judge Katherine Savage "improper," adding that his office has "requested that an appeal be taken to reverse the court's order."

Savage ruled on July 17 that Mahamu Kanneh, a Liberian who received asylum in the U.S. and attended high school and community college here, was denied a speedy trial after three years awaiting a court-appointed interpreter who could speak the tribal language of Vai. Linguists estimate that only 100,000 people speak Vai.

Prosecutor Appeals After Judge Drops Rape Charges Against Liberian Over Lack of Interpreter - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News - FOXNews.com

 

[Quantum Windbag]

NJ gives the test in several languages and I believe an interpreter must be offered if its a different one. In that case, I don't think they even have to know how to read.

Our tax dollars at work.

Time to make English our official language.

That's right. Let's see - how would that work in a criminal court . . .

A defendant who does not speak English is charged with murder. He is not entitled to a translator during the trial. He must testify in his native language. No one in the jury understands his native language. He cannot understand anything that goes on during the trial.

Brilliant. But, hey! He got himself arrested, didn't he? And he hasn't taken the trouble to learn our "official language." So SCREW HIM, right?

I actually support making English the official language as it would cut cost of printing everything in multiple languages. That does not mean I do not see that you have a point, but I am pretty sure that a translator would still work. Have the courts ever ruled on the issue of having an attporney that speaks the language of the defendant? If I was an appelate lawyer I would at least try to argue that not having an attorney that speaks your language is insufficient counsel.

 

[Article 15]

New Jersey's Supreme Court ruled today that police must inform drunken driving suspects in their native language that they are legally required to take a Breathalyzer test.

The 4 to 3 decision written by Chief Justice Stuart Rabner, stemmed from the case of German Marquez, who was charged with being driving drunk when he rear-ended another car near a Plainfield intersection on Sept. 20, 2007.

Marquez, who speaks only Spanish, did not understand an officer’s instructions in English that he was required by state law to take a breath test to determine if he was intoxicated, his lawyer said.

Marquez’s conviction for drunken driving remains intact after the Supreme Court decision. But his conviction for refusing to take a breath test was vacated.
The majority decision acknowledged that the Attorney General’s office has already moved to translate instructions about the test into other languages.

In April, the state recorded them in 10 languages -- Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Russian, Portuguese, and Spanish -- and posted the recordings on a state website, where police can play them for suspects before breath tests.

Anyone who passed their driver's test, should know about informed consent. The cops should not have to "educate them".

How will this work? Drunk all over the road, gets pulled over, cop must find a computer to translate instructions... None available? System down? Speak Farsi? " Then go ahead fella. Kill someone. " Unfrickenbelievable. Our tax dollars at work.

So?

 

[Article 15]

NJ gives the test in several languages and I believe an interpreter must be offered if its a different one. In that case, I don't think they even have to know how to read.

Our tax dollars at work.

Time to make English our official language.

That's right. Let's see - how would that work in a criminal court . . .

A defendant who does not speak English is charged with murder. He is not entitled to a translator during the trial. He must testify in his native language. No one in the jury understands his native language. He cannot understand anything that goes on during the trial.

Brilliant. But, hey! He got himself arrested, didn't he? And he hasn't taken the trouble to learn our "official language." So SCREW HIM, right?

Sounds good to me. You want to LIVE here? Learn the fucking language.

Do me a favor and don't ever comment about what should or should not be done in a court of law after saying something as ignorant as this shit.

 

[RetiredGySgt]

That's right. Let's see - how would that work in a criminal court . . .

A defendant who does not speak English is charged with murder. He is not entitled to a translator during the trial. He must testify in his native language. No one in the jury understands his native language. He cannot understand anything that goes on during the trial.

Brilliant. But, hey! He got himself arrested, didn't he? And he hasn't taken the trouble to learn our "official language." So SCREW HIM, right?

Sounds good to me. You want to LIVE here? Learn the fucking language.

Do me a favor and don't ever comment about what should or should not be done in a court of law after saying something as ignorant as this shit.

Fuck you, You and your ilk are why criminals walk free every day.

 

[Article 15]

Sounds good to me. You want to LIVE here? Learn the fucking language.

Do me a favor and don't ever comment about what should or should not be done in a court of law after saying something as ignorant as this shit.

Fuck you, You and your ilk are why criminals walk free every day.

Pure bullshit but fuck you and your authoritarian, jingoid ass right back anyway.

 

[chanel]

This is from the NJ DOJ website. I thought this was pretty funny. It must have been designed by TM:

FOR OPERATORS OF A MOTOR VEHICLE - N.J.S.A. 39:4-50.2(e)
(Revised & effective, April 26, 2004)

THE ARRESTING OFFICER MUST READ THE FOLLOWING TO THE DEFENDANT:
FULL TEXT OF STANDARD STATEMENT FOLLOWS:

1.
你因为酒后驾车或服用药物后驾车，或者是血液酒精浓度达到或超过法律允许的上限，已被逮捕。
2.
你必须依法提供呼吸样本以接受化学测试，从而确定你血液中的酒精浓度。
3.
我们会记录样本提取情况，包括提取日期、时间与结果。你可以索取一份样本提取记录。
4.
之前向你发出的警告，即提醒你有保持沉默以及咨询律师的权利并不适用于提取呼吸样本，你无权拒绝提供或拖延提供进行化学测试以确定你血液酒精浓度的呼吸样本。在提取样本时，你没有法定权利要求律师、医生或其他任何人陪同。
5.
在提供了用于化学测试的呼吸样本之后，你可以自己出资自行指定某人或某位医生独立采样，并对你的呼吸、尿液或血液进行独立的化学测试。
6.
如果你拒绝提供呼吸样本，那么你会因此收到另一张法庭传票。
7.
你在做出可以提取呼吸样本的许可时，任何含糊或有条件的回应都会被视为拒绝接受呼吸测试的行为。
8.
根据法律规定，如果法庭在拒绝接受呼吸测试上判定你有罪，那么法庭将吊销你的机动车驾驶执照，吊销持续时间不少于七个月但不超过20年。而且法庭还会对你拒绝接受测试的定罪征收合计300美元以上2000美元之下的罚款。
9.
9.因拒绝接受测试而被暂扣或吊销驾照的惩罚可与任何相关违法行为被处以的其他暂扣或吊销驾照惩罚分开另行计算。
10.
10.如果你因为拒绝接受呼吸化学测试而被定罪，那么法庭将安排你进入“酒醉驾车人员教育中心”（Intoxicated Driver Resource Center），而且你将被视为已裁定违反N.J.S.A. 39:4~50 法令，因此必须达到“中心”的要求，否则将受到惩处。
11.
再重复一遍，你必须依法提供呼吸样本以接受化学测试，从而确定你血液中的酒精浓度。现在，你是否愿意提供呼吸样本？
回答：

http://www.njpdresources.org/dui/pdfs/chinese.pdf

 

[editec]

If you cannot understand the language well enough to understand your rights when stopped, you have no business driving at all.

NJ is wrong on this one.

 

[The Rabbi]

At some point we need to stop catering to people's weaknesses. An inability to speak even rudimentary English is fine. But you take a risk in that case. The public should not have to subsidize that risk.
The case of a court room and charges of murder are much different. It doesnt happen that often, for example. Further, people have time to bring English speaking relatives and friends to help out.
Traffic stops are relatively frequent. If people are not aware of basic procedures and vocabulary then they deserve whatever ill effects of not understanding English they will have to endure.

 

[FA_Q2]

We NEED to define English as the official language in this country and avoid this inane bullshit.
@ george - that should in no way mean that a defendant would not get a fair trial or would not be afforded a translator for a trial. What is should mean is that we would no longer cater to a hundred languages throughout the country just because of your stubbornness to learn the language. Warning signs should not need to be in 5 languages and cops should not need to know YOUR language to have you take a breathalyzer. That is a rather stupid backwards way of accomplishing things.

@dante

The breathalyzer is a shitty technique to begin with.

Why? What is your issue with a breath test for alcohol? I would COMPLETELY support breathalyzer testing for anyone that is suspected of driving while drunk!

 

[chbecker_99]

My heart goes out to the police who have a hard enough time as it is.
It seems like law enforcement takes the brunt of everything on issues like this.
A mandatory understanding of basic English prior to obtaining a drivers license would avoid issues like these.

A good petition against this has been set up:

www petitionspot.com/petitions/press1forEnglish