Millville allegedly denied Hispanic litigants equal access to virtual court proceedings, according to a Division of Civil Rights complaint filed Tuesday.
The complaint claims that between June and December 2022, the Millville Municipal Court required litigants who were or were perceived to be Spanish-speaking to appear at in-person court proceedings instead of permitting them to appear virtually for court sessions, according to Attorney General Matthew Platkin.
The practice denied those litigants equal access to virtual court proceedings in the city, the complaint alleges.
Platkin and Division of Civil Rights Director Sundeep Iyer filed the complaint following a months-long investigation conducted by the DCR.
Municipal Court Judge Jason Witcher made public allegations of discrimination in December, sparking the investigation.
Defendants with Hispanic surnames were almost twice as likely as defendants with non-Hispanic surnames to be scheduled for an in-person court appearance, according to the investigation, which took into account other relevant factors.
“New Jersey’s laws forbid discrimination on the basis of national origin. That anyone in the City of Millville had to face discrimination from any public entity is disappointing, disheartening, and unacceptable,” Platkin said. “Such practices only serve to erode the public’s trust. New Jersey is committed to eliminating discrimination, no matter where it occurs.”
Beginning in June 2022, Millville Municipal Court started conducting in-person court sessions on Mondays and virtual court sessions on Wednesdays.
The Court schedules a Spanish language interpreter to provide Spanish interpretation services for two Monday in-court sessions each month. Although a virtual interpretation service was available for litigants who did not speak English, that service was rarely used for Spanish speakers at virtual hearings.
While the in-person interpreter’s services were available on only 25 percent of the days that court was in session between June 13, 2022 and Dec. 31, 2022, the in-person interpreter provided Spanish interpreting services for 95 percent of court appearances by litigants who needed Spanish interpreting services during that time, according to the investigation. The virtual interpretation service therefore provided Spanish interpreting services for less than 5 percent of court appearances by litigants who needed Spanish interpreting services during that time.
“Public trust depends on the promise that our public institutions will treat all people equally. Discrimination undermines that promise, and it violates our civil rights laws,” Iyer said. “The complaint we are announcing today reflects our ongoing commitment to ensuring that our institutions of public trust treat all New Jerseyans fairly and equally.”
The complaint explains that maintaining a practice of scheduling litigants who were or were perceived to be Hispanic for in-person sessions when the Spanish-language interpreter was available harmed these litigants, requiring them to take additional time off work, incur additional travel expenses, and arrange childcare.
