Monday, January 28, 2013

Suit: Police didn't Provide an interpreter

A Florida woman is hoping to soon resolve a lawsuit she filed over the failure of police to provider her with a sign language interpreter during her arrest last year. Yolanda Gevarzes is deaf says Port Orange officers took her into custody on a domestic violence charge following an argument with her boyfriend in the parking lot of a Chili's restaurant during which she bit him. Rather than call an interpreter to find out what Gevarzes says took place, they used her boyfriend as an interpreter, which led to her arrest. The 41 year old from nearby Daytona Beach was even handcuffed with her hands behind her back for a time, before being taken to the Volusia County Branch Jail. The staff of the facility did not provide with an interpreter either. Gevarzes is a grandmother who had never been arrested. She was released the next morning and no formal charges were ever filed against her.