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The municipal court in Millville required those who “were or were perceived to be Spanish-speaking” prevented them from participating in court proceedings virtually between June and December 2022, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin said on Aug. 8.
Instead, they were required to attend court proceedings in person, the attorney general said.
The situation was brought to light by Municipal Court Judge Jason Witcher, who accused the local system of “discriminatory” scheduling for Hispanic defendants last December, Platkin said.
An investigation by the New Jersey Division on Civil Rights followed, leading to the complaint that the Cumberland County city violated the state Law Against Discrimination, he said.
The complaint alleged that defendants with Hispanic surnames were “almost twice as likely” to be scheduled for an in-person court appearance as defendants with non-Hispanic surnames (“after controlling for other relevant factors”).
“That anyone in the City of Millville had to face discrimination from any public entity is disappointing, disheartening, and unacceptable,” Platkin said Tuesday. “Such practices only serve to erode the public’s trust.”
Beginning in June 2022, the Millville Municipal Court began conducting in-person court sessions on Mondays and virtual court sessions on Wednesdays, the attorney general said.
Platkin noted that the court also schedules a Spanish language interpreter for only two Monday in-court sessions each month.
Although one was available for litigants who didn’t speak English, it was “rarely used” for Spanish speakers at virtual hearings, he said.
As a result, those who spoke Spanish were forced to “take additional time off work, incur additional travel expenses, and arrange childcare,” Platkin said.
Millville Municipal Court officials didn’t immediately respond.
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