Trump's administration will replace the immigration translators with video clips

The administration of US President Donald Trump is preparing to replace interpreters in the immigration court at the initial hearings with videos that will inform asylum-seekers and other immigrants about their rights.

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The administration presents these changes as a measure of cost savings for the immigration judicial system. However, immigrant advocates are concerned that the new procedure could jeopardize their rights to due process, add confusion and potentially make the system less effective.

The Department of Justice has already informed immigration judges about the changes, holding special training sessions in June 2019.

This is a “core calendar” hearing, in which immigration judges meet with dozens of immigrants a day in quick succession to schedule their cases and inform them about their rights. These sessions are designed primarily to ensure that immigrants understand what is happening, know when the next hearing of their case will take place, and what steps they need to take before this point.

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In accordance with the new plan, which, according to the Department of Justice, will be launched by mid-July, the video will be played in several languages. She will inform immigrants about their rights and the progress of the trial. But if after that immigrants have any questions, there will be no interpreter in the courtroom who would help him to ask them. In addition, it will not be possible to clarify whether immigrants understood their rights.

Many immigrants come from Central America, but they all speak different local dialects and sometimes do not even know Spanish, not to mention English. Immigrants from all over the world also appear before the judicial system, which is administered by the Department of Justice.

These changes will particularly affect immigrants who do not have attorneys for litigation. Legal services across the country claim that there are not enough lawyers at all. The government does not provide them.

Instead of contacting an interpreter in court, the judges will have to rely on the services of people who know the language, who are in the building for other purposes, or call the telephone service for translation on demand.

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“This is a disaster for the trial,” said one judge, speaking on condition of anonymity.

“What if you have a person who speaks some local dialect, has no education and is completely illiterate? Do you think showing them the video will fully inform them of their rights? How should they ask the judge questions?” - he added.

The Department of Justice announced this move as a measure of economy. Sources familiar with the situation with translators say that there are constant problems with the budget and the contract with the main translator provider, which makes the administration use the telephone and look for other ways to reduce costs.

The Union of Immigration Judges stated that this change was another step taken by the administration to get judges to do more with less resources.

When asked to comment, union president Ashley Tabaddor, a Los Angeles judge, said that the Department of Justice did not give the union the opportunity to raise objections or contribute to the change.

She dismissed budget problems as an excuse.

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“The cost of translation does not come as a surprise; it is an integral part of every case,” Tabaddor said.

“If they truly look at immigration courts as real courts, they will never turn down interpreters. But the fact that we're here and we have these budget deficits means they have other priorities in the budget," she added.

Immigration courts have been overburdened for years due to the growing burden, which has now resulted in a million cases lagging behind 1. The Association of Judges supported the removal of courts from the management of the Department of Justice and the creation of an independent system.

Some judges said that often at the first hearing it turns out that immigrants often misunderstand their rights and ability to search for a lawyer. Some conclude that they should not return to the next hearing if they do not have a lawyer. But non-appearance is the basis for a deportation order.

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