A police officer must provide the same level of safety and protection to a person who speaks no English as to anyone else. In doing so, police departments also protect themselves.
Language barriers make police officers less effective
Communicating across a language barrier is hard even under the best of circumstances. Police officers, firefighters, paramedics and emergency room staff often encounter vulnerable non-English speakers in crisis situations, when accurate communication matters most.
Even routine interactions can go wrong when communication is impaired, with serious consequences. Consider the ordinary traffic stop. An officer who cannot communicate effectively cannot convey the reason for the stop, the need for identification, the meaning of a written citation, or what the driver is expected to do next. Clear communication reduces needless anxiety for the officer and the driver alike. Now consider domestic violence calls, where responding officers may find themselves relying on an English-speaking child, or even the abuser, to communicate with the victim. Or consider the time lost in apprehending a suspect when officers cannot communicate with a victim or witness at the scene.
Life-threatening situations are not the only concern. Strained communication between officers and non-English speakers can compromise the integrity of the judicial process itself. Real-life examples of the cost of poor language preparedness in first-responder work, from the routine to the deadly, are easy to find.
Federal law requires police to address language barriers
Beyond the common-sense reasons for addressing language barriers in police work, the law obliges police departments to ensure that non-English speakers can access their services. As a condition of receiving federal funds, police departments and other recipients of federal financial assistance must comply with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and its implementing regulations.
Our Russian interpreters are here to help. From Russian-speaking role players for military and law enforcement exercises to document translation and simultaneous interpretation at conferences, training seminars and field operations, you can count on us to remove the language barrier.
