Opinion ID: 2074018
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Right to Separate Interpreter

Text: Martinez Chavez understands little, if any, English. He presents a number of arguments based on the interpreters used to communicate with him. Police Questioning. Martinez Chavez claims that failure to provide him with an unbiased interpreter during preliminary questioning violated his right against self-incrimination. He cites two cases in which this Court reversed convictions because the arresting police officer served as the translator at the guilty plea hearings. Mislik v. State (1915), 184 Ind. 72, 110 N.E. 551 (officer told defendant to say I was there even though defendant wanted to plead not guilty); Bielich v. State (1920), 189 Ind. 127, 126 N.E. 220 (defendant did not intend to plead guilty). When the police picked up Martinez Chavez for questioning, Officer Sam Rodriquez served as an interpreter. Officer Roger Szostek formulated questions in English which Rodriquez translated into Spanish. Rodriquez then translated Martinez Chavez's answer into English and Szostek typed up a statement in English. The officers had Martinez Chavez sign the statement and a waiver form in English. At the suppression hearing, Martinez Chavez said he did not understand that he was waiving his rights. The trial court ruled that the statement could be used only for impeachment purposes. Martinez Chavez argues the ruling was wrong. Whether the ruling was right or wrong does not affect the validity of the conviction because the State used the statement only to impeach Martinez Chavez during the death penalty phase of the trial. If the trial court did err, the error did not affect the conviction. Joinder Hearing. Martinez Chavez argues that the trial court erred by failing to provide simultaneous translation at the hearing on joinder. At that hearing Robert Hinojosa appeared as Martinez Chavez's interpreter, but he did not provide simultaneous translation. The trial court said, It's not necessary to do the simultaneous translation as long as he's told what has occurred. Counsel then presented their legal arguments without calling any witnesses. During the hearing, the trial court directed Hinojosa to explain what the attorneys were arguing about. The trial judge said, I want him to explain to the defendant that the motion we're here today for is to join his case with the trial of Reynaldo Rondon. An indigent defendant who cannot speak or understand English has a right to have his proceedings simultaneously translated to allow for effective participation. United States ex rel. Negron v. State of New York, 434 F.2d 386 (2d Cir.1970). In Negron, the defendant never received the benefit of translation while the trial was in progress. The translator merely summarized the testimony of the witnesses during two brief recesses throughout the entire four-day trial. Id. at 388. The Second Circuit found that this procedure denied the defendant's right of confrontation and endangered other rights. Id. at 389. Eight years later Congress passed the Court Interpreters Act of 1978, 28 U.S.C. § 1827 (1978). Although the Act governs the use of interpreters only in the federal system, a recent case construing the Act is helpful in resolving Martinez Chavez's argument. The Ninth Circuit stated that while the Act generally requires the interpreter to be at the defendant's side continuously, its purposes were adequately met when the defendants had an interpreter at all times except on three occasions when the trial court borrowed the interpreter to assist a witness. United States v. Lim, 794 F.2d 469 (9th Cir.1986), cert. denied, 479 U.S. 937, 107 S.Ct. 416, 93 L.Ed.2d 367. The instant case is more similar to Lim than to Negron. While Martinez Chavez did not have continuous translation at the joinder hearing, he did have simultaneous translation at the other proceedings against him. At the brief joinder hearing where Martinez Chavez did not have simultaneous translation, the attorneys made legal arguments to the court without presenting any witnesses. Had the arguments been factual and required the testimony of witnesses, the procedures used at the joinder hearing might have implicated Martinez Chavez's right of confrontation and the other rights attendant to his presence in court. While simultaneous translation of the hearing would have been better, the trial court adequately protected Martinez Chavez's rights by directing the interpreter to tell him that the attorneys were arguing over whether his case should be joined with Rondon's. Translation at Trial. Martinez Chavez challenges the translation procedure at trial. He argues that the trial court should have appointed an independent interpreter in addition to the court interpreter to facilitate communications with his attorney. An interpreter enables a non-English speaking defendant to understand the trial, provides a means of communication between the defendant and his attorney, and translates the defendant's testimony if he testifies. State v. Neave, 117 Wis.2d 359, 362 n. 2, 344 N.W.2d 181, 183 n. 2 (1984). The interpreter is necessary to implement fundamental notions of due process such as the right to be present at trial, the right to confront one's accusers, and the right to counsel. Abe Gomez served as the interpreter in this trial. All but one witness testified in English. Gomez sat behind Martinez Chavez and simultaneously translated the English testimony into Spanish. During the brief testimony of the Spanish-speaking witness, Gomez translated the testimony into English. At that time, of course, appellant did not need an interpreter. The trial court never allowed Gomez to take the stand for either party, although Gomez did attest to Officer Rodriquez's fluency in Spanish. Martinez Chavez maintains the trial court should have appointed another interpreter in addition to Gomez. His argument focuses on the inability of a single translator to provide simultaneous translation of the proceedings and serve as an interpreter between him and his attorney. He cites two cases in support of this argument. Both cases are distinguishable. In one case, the California Court of Appeals held that a defendant who does not speak English is effectively denied his right to an interpreter when his defense attorney must translate. People v. Chavez, 124 Cal. App.3d 215, 177 Cal. Rptr. 306 (1981) (construing state constitutional provision requiring an interpreter throughout the proceedings). The court reasoned that defense counsel could not cross-examine witnesses, listen attentively to testimony and make objections and at the same time render a complete and accurate translation for his clients. Id. at 226, 177 Cal. Rptr. at 313. This reasoning does not apply here because Martinez Chavez's counsel did not serve as both attorney and interpreter. In the other case, the United States Supreme Court held that an indigent criminal defendant had the right to the assistance of an independent psychiatrist when the defendant's sanity was seriously in question. Ake v. Oklahoma, 470 U.S. 68, 105 S.Ct. 1087, 84 L.Ed.2d 53 (1985). Martinez Chavez correctly notes that the Supreme Court ruled that a defendant had the right to consult a psychiatrist in preparation for presenting an insanity defense even though the trial court had already relied on a court-appointed psychiatrist to determine whether the defendant was competent to stand trial. He sees the right to an independent interpreter as an analogy. The analogy is too tenuous. A psychiatrist provides the substance of the insanity defense and without an independent psychiatrist an indigent defendant would be deprived of the opportunity to prove his insanity. An interpreter merely translates words without adding anything of substance to the defense. Ake does not support the conclusion that the trial court should have appointed a separate interpreter for Martinez Chavez in addition to the translation Gomez provided. At oral argument, Martinez Chavez's appellate counsel indicated that Martinez Chavez used Gomez to communicate with his counsel at recesses. Because Martinez Chavez communicated with his counsel through the interpreter at times other than during the trial, the translation arrangement did not deprive him of the right to counsel. The procedures used at trial afforded Martinez Chavez a fair trial in which he was meaningfully present, able to confront his accusers, and represented by counsel. Absence of Spanish Record. The court reporter took down those portions of the proceedings that were in English but did not record the interpreter's simultaneous Spanish translation to Martinez Chavez. Martinez Chavez did not object at trial but claims on appeal that the trial court committed fundamental error by failing to provide an independent means of verifying the translation. He suggests that the simultaneous translation should have been taped to allow review at a later time by someone who spoke Spanish. This Court has held that the record of a post-conviction proceeding was complete even though the court reporter did not separately take down the Spanish words the interpreter translated into English. Garcia v. State (1979), 271 Ind. 209, 391 N.E.2d 604, cert. denied, 444 U.S. 901, 100 S.Ct. 212, 62 L.Ed.2d 137. One factor in the Garcia decision was the presence of the petitioner's priest who spoke Spanish and confirmed that the translation was accurate and correct. Id. at 212, 391 N.E.2d at 606. Although the record contained only the English translation and not the petitioner's answers in Spanish, the Court ruled that the petitioner knowingly and voluntarily pled guilty. A criminal defendant is denied due process when the accuracy and scope of a translation at a hearing or trial is subject to grave doubt. United States v. Cirrincione, 780 F.2d 620 (7th Cir.1985). The interpreter in this case took an oath to translate truly, and appellant presents no evidence to suggest that the interpreter violated his oath. Although an independent interpreter did not corroborate Gomez's translation, as the priest did in Garcia, there is no indication that the interpretation is subject to grave doubt.