Toronto defence lawyer Edward Prutschi sparred with NewTalk1010’s host, Jerry Agar, this morning over the importance for police to ensure drivers understand their legal rights. The discussion was about the recent case where a drunk driving charge was dismissed because police failed to get a man an interpreter after he repeatedly stated he could not speak English.
Though the man spoke to police in English and was able to understand it conversationally, he claims he didn’t understand the legal proceedings and what was supposed to happen.
Although police have access to 24/7-translation services via the phone, they failed to get the man an interpreter. DUI Lawyer Edward Prutschi states it’s important that all citizens fully understand legal advice, whether that’s in English or Tamil.
Toronto isn’t new to multiculturalism, and there are services and resources like the interpreters available for a reason. There are practices in place because this is a common issue, police in this case just failed to take the extra steps. Prutschi states that we don’t convict people without following the proper process to protect everyone.