Imagine, if you will, a turn of events that drops a man suddenly into a world in which no one speaks his language. Convicted of a crime, this is a circumstance of his own making, yet the unfamiliar surroundings and the indistinguishable chatter leave him scared and confused.
Submitted for your consideration: Is there something amiss when a legal resident of this nation awaits determination of his fate, jailed far away from his community, and largely unable to communicate with the system that will decide his future?
Marshall Islanders can live in this country indefi nitely without visas, primarily because offrom the U.S. military’s detonation of nuclear bombs in tests - lots of them - during the 1940s and 1950s near their homeland.
Members of Springdale’s Marshalleselargest outside the Marshall Islands - face deportation in growing numbers when they are convicted of crimes. And they should. But it’s a shame the federal system does little to empower them to participate in their own cases.
Many do not speak English and Marshallese interpreters in the deportation system are few.
In a nation that generally values preserving one’s ability to offer up a fair defense in a court of law, this situation seems unfair.
Justice isn’t always about what happens in the fi nal outcome of a case. A person can be entirely guilty of a crime yet still be wronged by the process. That’s no suggestion the guilty shouldn’t receive a just punishment. But Americans are a decent people, by and large, so injustices within the system should be examined closely to ensure our collective sense of fairness is reflected in the way we treat even those who have violated our laws.
Imagine being accused of a crime in a foreign land, then having to watch the proceedings against you without a syllable of explanation in a language you can understand? It falls short of cruel and unusual, but it’s not the humane thing to do.
Everyone deserves a fair hearing, and it’s hard to imagine one happening without benefi t of communication.
The United States should work hard to ensure a Marshall Islander’s journey through the deportation process isn’t a step into The Twilight Zone.
CASUALTIES OF WAR To honor the men and women in our armed forces and remind our readers of their sacrifices, Northwest Arkansas Newspapers is publishing Department of Defense announcements identifying Americans killed in active military operations.
U.S. Army Spc. Daniel L. Carlson, 21, of Running Springs, Calif., died Nov. 9, in Kandahar province, Afghanistan. Carlson was assigned to 3rd Battalion, 25th Aviation Regiment, 25th Combat AviationBrigade, 25th Infantry Division, Wheeler Army Airfi eld, Hawaii.
U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Kenneth W. Bennett, 26, of Glendora, Calif., died Nov. 10, in Sperwan Gar, Afghanistan, from injuries suffered when he encountered an improvised explosive device during combat operations. He was assigned to the 53rd Ordnance Company (EOD), 3rd Ordnance Battalion (EOD), Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash.
Opinion, Pages 5 on 12/11/2012