Fort Bend County in Texas has settled allegations of civil rights violations regarding language access, according to a recent press release from the Department of Justice. The county agreed to settle the allegations after the DOJ alleged that Fort Bend County discriminated against individuals with limited English proficiency (LEP) in its courts.
The allegations claimed that the county’s courts denied individuals with LEP access to interpreters, including a Vietnamese interpreter, and required them to find and pay for their own interpreters. This is a violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination based on national origin, among other things.
The county has since made significant changes to its language access policies, including providing free interpreter services to individuals with LEP, regardless of income, in all civil and criminal cases. The county has also created a training program for court employees on language access and a guide for judges on language access.
In addition, the county has made available a public webpage explaining how to request interpreter services or translation, and has provided a complaint form on language access in multiple languages on its website. Court employees have also received Title VI training on retaliation.
“The new policies and procedures put in place by the Fort Bend County courts have helped to provide meaningful access to language for individuals with limited English proficiency,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Civil Rights Division. “I hope that other court systems will follow the example of Fort Bend County and take steps to provide interpreter services to litigants without charge.”
“Fort Bend County is one of the most diverse counties in Texas, with nearly half of the population hailing from Spain, East Asia, and South Asia,” said US Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani for the Southern District of Texas. “As a native Texan, an immigrant, and the child of Indian-born parents, working-class parents, I’ve seen firsthand the struggles of the newest Americans who speak English as a second language, and the need for interpreters, especially during court proceedings.”
The settlement marks a significant victory for the DOJ’s efforts to protect the civil rights of individuals with LEP and ensure that they have meaningful access to the court system.
The case demonstrates the importance of language access in the courts and the need for counties like Fort Bend to take steps to ensure that individuals with LEP have access to the services they need to participate fully in the court system.
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Key Facts
- State: Federal
- Category: Civil Rights|Language Access
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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