Public Notice Detail
Southeast MN Courts Seek Additional Judges, Court Interpreters to Meet Massive Demands
Posted: Thursday, March 29, 2001
“The demand for interpreters and judges has taken an upward curve and we don’t see a change in the near future,” said Judge Gerard Ring, Chief Judge of the Third Judicial District. “We’ve squeezed as much as we can from our current resources. We need legislators’ support to handle this backbreaking stress on the court system.”
The Judiciary’s proposed budget would give the Third District the two new judges it needs to keep pace with existing caseloads. The District includes the counties of Dodge, Fillmore, Freeborn, Houston, Mower, Olmsted, Rice, Steele, Wabasha, Waseca and Winona.
Since 1982, major criminal cases have increased 184 percent in the Third District and major juvenile cases have increased 165 percent. Major cases take about 80 percent of judges’ time.
All across the state, judges are working harder than ever under the pressure of increased filings. The Minnesota Legislative Auditor reported on Jan. 26, 2001 that Minnesota’s judges handle 49 percent more cases per judge compared to judges in states that have similar court systems (7,854 total filings per Minnesota judge compared to a median 5,274 total filings per judge in comparable states).
As a result, cases are piling up. Currently, Olmsted County has a backlog of about 400 conciliation court cases. Judge Ring said he has received letters from numerous people who are upset because their cases have experienced delay.
The increases also mean judges spend less time on each case. On average, Minnesota judges spend 11.3 minutes for each Driving While Intoxicated file, 20.5 minutes for each domestic abuse file and 2-5 minutes per case on arraignment calendars. Some judges have used the terms “McJustice” and “The Assembly Line of Justice” to describe their courtrooms.
“An assembly line is an industrial concept that focuses on constructing products as quickly as possible,” said Judge Ring. “We shouldn’t be using the same term to describe the way our courts interact with human beings. These are people in often difficult, life-changing situations and they depend on judges to make good decisions, not just quick ones.”
Court interpreters
The need for court interpreters in Third District courtrooms is also growing rapidly. Language barriers can double or triple court time. Olmsted County alone handles cases in more than a dozen different languages, each of which may have dozens of different dialects. Interpreters are constitutionally mandated because they are fundamental to understanding court proceedings.
However, court officials often find it difficult to find interpreters at all, let alone interpreters who are qualified to work in a court setting. Last September, three different murder trials were scheduled simultaneously in three different Third District counties. All of the trials required a Spanish interpreter and one required more than one interpreter. Court administrators were forced to find out-of-town interpreters and rearrange schedules because there were too few local interpreters to meet the need.
If interpreters are not available locally, they must travel from the Twin Cities. This adds travel time and mileage that can push interpreter costs for a 20-minute hearing up to $400 or more. Such expenses put pressure on an already stressed budget.
In 1996, the Third District budgeted just under $50,000 for court interpreters. In 1999, the district budgeted just more than $102,000. However, the district actually spent about $200,000, more than four times the budget of 1996. Statewide, judicial district expenditures on interpreter services increased by 197 percent in just four years, from $674,000 in 1996 to $2 million in 2000.
“If we fail to address the court system’s needs, there will be real consequences for real people,” said Minnesota Supreme Court Chief Justice Kathleen A. Blatz. “There are already unacceptable deficits in many areas and we must work to change them.”