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This woman, who called for police protection, was in jail for more than a week without knowing the charges against her. A man performed a body cavity search. She was “diagnosed” with “psychiatric issues” because she could not communicate with police. A district attorney agreed to drop any charges against the woman, but refused to release her from jail until she had a place to go. An advocate for the Deaf/Hard of Hearing stood her ground and secured the woman’s release.
This information would be disturbing if it happened to anybody, but that it happened to a young woman who couldn’t understand what was being said to her is even more appalling. It is not “special treatment” to follow the law. The police department should have sent for a sign interpreter. Seeing that they failed at that simple task, the woman should have been arraigned in court. It seems that there were breakdowns everywhere in the system.
..snip..
