Md. Judge Dismisses Sex-Abuse Charges

[acmavm]

Source: Washington Post

<snip>


Clerk Is Unable To Find Suitable Translator In Time

By Ernesto Londoño
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, July 22, 2007; Page C05

A 7-year-old girl said she had been raped and repeatedly molested over the course of a year. Police in Montgomery County, acting on information from a relative, soon arrested a Liberian immigrant living in Gaithersburg. They marshaled witnesses and DNA evidence to prepare for trial.

What was missing -- for much of the nearly three years that followed -- was an interpreter fluent in the suspect's native language. A judge recently dropped the charges, not because she found that Mahamu Kanneh had been wrongly accused but because repeated delays in the case had, in her view, violated his right to a speedy trial.

<snip>

The trial date was extended repeatedly as the state and the defense argued over whether Kanneh needed an interpreter and whether he understood the legal proceedings. The state noted that Kanneh attended high school and community college in Montgomery and spoke to detectives in English. The defense insisted that he needed an interpreter to fully understand the proceedings.

<snip>

Earlier this month, Chernosky filed a motion seeking to have the indictment dismissed, arguing that Kanneh's right to a speedy trial had been violated. "This delay is just too long," she argued in court. "The reasons for the delay are not the defendant's fault."

-MORE-



Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/21/AR2007072100660.html?referrer=email

[OnyxCollie]

1. Tell that to the "enemy combatants" in Gitmo. nt

[acmavm]

2. ??

[bemildred]

3. He means that the people in Gitmo have been waiting for a trial

for some time now, too.

[MLFerrell]

4. My guess is the post referred to the dismissal being predicated on the "right to a speedy trial".

[acmavm]

5. Okay. But that's something totally different. I suppose that sticking to the

subject matter would be a little too much to ask.

[OnyxCollie]

6. No, it's not totally different.

There are people in Gitmo who, after five years, have not only been held without charge but have yet to be identified as Al Qaeda or Taliban. Five fucking years. The judge determines that this guy, accused of raping a child, has been denied his right to a speedy trial because of trouble finding an interpreter (although the defendant spoke to detectives in english) and dismisses the case.

Tell that the people in Gitmo.

[acmavm]

7. This thread is about a particular incident in Maryland. I understand,

you understand, we all understand what's happening in GITMO. But for all intents and purposes I DON'T CARE IN THIS PARTICULAR INSTANCE ABOUT IT. I am posting about a miscarriage of justice in Maryland. In the US of A.

[Name removed]

9. Deleted sub-thread

Sub-thread removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[ProudDad]

38. Whatever happened to "innocent until proven guilty"

according to the law of the land, the accused is innocent...

Just because the state is incompetent doesn't make the innocent accused "guilty"...

What "miscarriage" of justice???

[catgirl]

39. What? The miscarriage of justice is to the little girl

Where's her justice? This guy didn't stand trial. This country is
lenient on sex offenders. The little girl whose body was recently found
in Washington state was killed by a sex offender. He violently raped a
young relative of his and got TWO MONTHS in jail. The dead girl will
get no justice. Yes, you are innocent until proven guilty, but the accused
should stand trial.

[Virginian]

8. So what happens to the child now? - back on topic

Has she been removed from the abusive environment. If this started when she was 7 and has lasted for around 3 years, she is still only 10 years old. Doesn't the she have a right to a life without fear of continued sexual assault by this person?

Doesn't society have a right? There are other 7 year olds in Montgomery County. Shouldn't they also be protected from abuse from this man?

[acmavm]

10. I wonder that myself. Or any other children this predator comes in

contact with.

[bobthedrummer]

12. You have raised a most important critical question, Virginian.

For those that share that view here is an active thread from GD to consider. It raises many profound questions and is disturbing to review, but it cannot be ignored.

"What has happened to the safeguards of our children?" (started 7-19-2007)
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x1382496

[Miss Chybil]

14. The lack of common sense in the justice system - in the entire government, for that matter -

is APPALLING!!!

Ah, not to worry. I'm sure they will find an interpreter in time the NEXT TIME he (allegedly) rapes a little girl.


:nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke:

[MLFerrell]

11. Um, isn't Liberia's official language English?

Yes. Yes it is.

http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/6618.htm

Languages: English is the official language. There are 16 indigenous languages.

Though this guy allegedly speaks Vai, one of the 16 other languages, wouldn't it be safe to assume that this guy speaks English to a great degree? Especially since he attended fucking college here in the U.S.?

[acmavm]

13. Thank you. You hit on the one thing that puzzled me the most. He went to

college. Did he need an interpreter? Did he have bad grades?

He went to high school here as well.

This whole story stinks.

[LiberalFighter]

15. Shows the incompetence of the judge and the prosecutors in the case

The judge allowed this to happen. There wasn't anything to stop him from making a ruling the the defendant was ready to be tried provided he had competent attorneys. Of course, that is another issue.

[acmavm]

16. You're right.

[MonkeyFunk]

17. Not important

but the Judge was a "she".

[jimnasium]

18. Exactly!

This judge screwed up big time. Apparently, she didn't do the minute of research that the official language of Liberia is English.
What's even more amazing is that the WaPo reporters found 3 interpreters fluent in the defendant's native tribal dialect - in one day!

This judge is either seriously overworked, or has no business being on the bench.

[Igel]

19. The official language doesn't matter.

Seriously, it doesn't. The educated will know English, in all likelihood, but its official status doesn't matter. Many Mexican citizens in US courts don't know Spanish, don't know it well enough for court proceedings, or simply lie because they know that it's hard to find approved translators for some Uto-Manguean languages in the US.

The court clerk found 3 interpreters, too. One left, another didn't pass muster, and a third was sick at a crucial time. No word on whether any of the three that the clerk found are among the three WaPo found; it's possible and quite plausible that there's overlap. It would have been better to have ignored the court-appointed psychologist's recommendation. IMO, what the court did was equivalent to hiring a pastry chef to evaluate whether my wife needed a root canal; there are people whose profession involves second language acquisition assessment, and I'm sure that the APA would be pissed if an SLA expert were called into evaluate a defendent's psychological state.

There are between 5 and 10 thousand languages spoken on earth. Any of them might turn up in court. Since it's a right to speak only your native language in a court and a right to an arbitrarily speedy trial, it can sometimes be difficult to ensure that the alleged victim's rights matter in the least.

[atreides1]

20. Maybe the judge should have just went ahead with the trial

And let the situation be dealt with by an appeals court, which would have been a little more understanding of the ploy that this scum used to get released.

IMHO

[catgirl]

40. I think it's the latter...incompetent

She should be pulled from the bench. This is outrageous.

[Thothmes]

45. Or maybe the skill of his defense attorney.

[catgirl]

21. Unable to find interpreter, court drops child rape case

Source: AFP


WASHINGTON (AFP) - A judge in Maryland dropped child rape charges against a Liberian-born man because court officials could not find an interpreter for the defendant, court officials said Monday

Three years after Mahamu Kanneh was arrested and charged with repeatedly raping a seven-year-old girl, judge Katherine Savage dropped the charges because the delays had violated his right to a speedy trial.

"This is one of the most difficult decisions I've had to make in a long time," Savage was quoted as saying by the Washington Post.

The defense said Kanneh needed an interpreter who spoke his native tribal language, Vai, in order to fully understand the proceedings, even though he attended high school and college in Maryland and was able to speak English.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070723/ts_alt_afp/usliberiatrialchild_070723180425;_ylt=AkGVAq3rKerJXh62UIfZd7jMWM0F

---

Great legal system we have. One night in jail for repeatedly raping
a seven year old girl.

[MNDemNY]

22. Whom are you faulting, the Judge, or the prosecutor's office for

not finding a translator?

[catgirl]

41. He didn't need a translator!

If you can attend high school and college here, you can
stand trial with a translator here. I fault the defense lawyer
for being an absolute greedy scumbag. Apparently money
is more important than the safety of our children. Let's see
how the judge and his lawyers feel when this guy rapes AND
kills his next victim.

[redqueen]

23. He spoke English!

How the @#&* did that claim stand? That he needed an interpreter?! Chrissake!

How about "well then YOU find one, and if you don't, we'll proceed anyway"?! Huh? How about that?

:nuke:

[THUNDER HANDS]

33. doesn't matter

I'm a court reporter, I've taken depositions with people who could speak English, but still had interpreters. A lot of words come up in the course of a deposition or trial that a person whose native language is not English might not be familiar with.

It's more than just a technicality.

[redqueen]

35. *sigh*

Yes, I can see that.

Frickin heartbreaking, though. :(

[madrchsod]

37. we have a friend from ghana who speaks

the kings english but he has different ways of saying things and interpreting what we say...leads to interesting conversations

[acmavm]

24. Might as well read these responses while you're at it.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x2926009

[partylessinOhio]

25. He speaks English and attended HS and college?

What the hell is up with this? Rape a seven year old child? Can't try him then castrate him. There is no excuse for refusing justice to this child.
:wtf:

[youngdem]

26. Terrible, but the right decision

The prosecutor failed to provide a translator, and the defendant has a legal right to understand the charges against him and to participate in his own defense, neither of which can be done if the language is foreign.

The prosecutor should be sanctioned for failing IN THREE YEARS to locate someone who spoke Vai.

Perhaps we should just deport the suspect back to Liberia. 'Justice' would likely find him there.

[I Have A Dream]

29. It says that he went to high school and college in Maryland.

How could he not have understood English? I don't agree that it was the corrct decision given this information.

[atreides1]

30. Here's a list

Which one of these did he violate?




Any alien that is in the United States may be subject to deportation or removal if he or she:

Is an inadmissible alien according to immigration laws in effect at the time of entry to the U.S. or adjustment of non immigrant status;

Is present in the U.S. in violation of the Immigration and Nationality Act or any other U.S. law;

Violated non immigrant status or a condition of entry into the U.S.;

Terminated a conditional permanent residence;

Encouraged or aided any other alien to enter the U.S. illegally;

Engaged in marriage fraud to gain admission to the U.S.;

Was convicted of certain criminal offenses;

Failed to register or falsified documents relating to entry in to the U.S.;

Engaged in any activity that endangers public safety or creates a risk of national security; or

Engaged in unlawful voting.

He definitely isn't a stupid man, he attended both high school and college here in the US, which means he understood and had a good comprehension of the English language.

By the way it seems he was granted asylum here in the US.

[Bacchus39]

27. impeach the judge!! along with Bush

n/t

[atreides1]

31. Why?

The judge was just following the law, unless you know of something in the Maryland Statutes that would have allowed the trial to go forward without violating this man's Constitutional Rights.

[ceile]

28. Saw a story about this.

I was flipping through and heard on CNN or maybe it was Fox that they were able to find 3 people that spoke Vai in just a few hours. Not sure who exactly they called, but I got the impression they called several universities. If our "media" can find translators why can't the prosecutors?

[trashcanistanista]

32. I saw this too on HNN today

they were two days away from securing a translator. The judge did not want to wait two more days.

[THUNDER HANDS]

34. are they Vai translators

or just people who spoke Vai?

There's a difference.

[catgirl]

42. They called a professional translator company

[Milo_Bloom]

36. Problem in the system.

It shouldn't be up to the prosecutor to find a translator... that should be the job of the defense and the state should just have to pay for it.

Finding an acceptable translator should be YOUR job, it just shouldn't be YOUR expense.

[inMD]

44. Acquiring translator is responsibility of court

Acquiring the translator is the responsibility of the court...not the prosecutor and not the defense. It is court approved and court appointed. Just getting someone who speaks Vai is not good enough, they have to be approved by the court (I don't know what that process entails)

The first left because they could not handle the graphic nature of the crime. (7 year old raped on several occasions)

The second needed to leave for medical reasons.

The third was in the courtroom when the case was dismissed by the judge.

I'm not happy about this. They have DNA evidence and witnesses when he was caught. This is a travesty of justice. The defendant speaks english anyway, he went to high school here and college.

The prosecutor is appealing. I don't think this is the last you will hear of this.

[ButterflyBlood]

43. Are judges in Maryland elected?

If so, this one is OUT next election.

[dsc]

46. This shouldn't have come to this

Surely they should have been able to find someone to do this work. I admit to having severe doubts as to the need for a translator but once the court decided he needed one, one should have been found. This is a crying shame.