Massachusetts mayor requests translator in court hearing due to his poor English

Lawrence, Massachusetts, Mayor Brian DePena appeared in court on Friday, where he required a translator to participate in proceedings at a Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) Commission proceeding on Friday.

The hearing concerned former Lawrence Police Chief William Castro, a political ally of DePena, who was stripped of his policing credentials following an improper police chase. Castro was accused of driving the wrong way down a city street during the chase and filing a false police report, claiming he was responding to an armed bank robbery when he had actually been responding to someone attempting to cash a bad check. 

DePena testified on Castro’s behalf during the commission proceeding, but it was the mayor’s request to use a translator that drew significant attention. 

According to Mass Daily News, the presiding judge declined to allow DePena’s personal assistant to serve as the translator, citing concerns that anything interpreted privately could not be independently verified. Since neither the judge nor the opposing counsel speaks Spanish, concerns were raised that mistranslations could affect testimony and thus influence responses or distort the official court record.

The incident sparked criticism online, with many arguing that elected officials should be able to communicate directly in English during proceedings that pertain to their office. Massachusetts does not currently require elected officials to speak fluent English.

DePena is a native of the Dominican Republic and immigrated to New York in the early 1980s before settling in Lawrence in 1989. Over 80 percent of the city’s population is now Hispanic, according to the US Census.