Chenedu Ibrahim Ali claims he was bullied to enter a plea on outstanding traffic tickets despite not being provided with an interpreter
NEWARK - A deaf man has filed suit against the city and its municipal court, claiming he was repeatedly denied a sign language interpreter while attempting to take care of outstanding traffic tickets earlier this year.
In his federal complaint filed Nov. 25, Chenedu Ibrahim Ali of Plainfield, alleges he was "ignored, humiliated and treated with discrimination and deliberate indifference" by both judges and court officers, violating his rights in the process.
Ali, who communicates primarily through sign language, contends he was pulled over in Fanwood on July 2 for driving without a working headlight. He was cited and paid a fine, but was soon advised that he had two unresolved tickets issued by the Newark police.
He claims he was unaware of the citations, and opted to take them to court for a hearing.
On July 21, he arrived at the downtown municipal court, but allegedly waited for nearly three hours without being assigned an interpreter. When he approached the unidentified judge, he claims he stated he was deaf and needed more information before making a plea.
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"The judge, becoming aggravated with the Plaintiff, yelled at him to decide whether he was guilty or not and sign the paper and screamed at him loudly stating, upon information and belief: 'That's a lie! You can hear me!'"
Ali alleges that his hearing was rescheduled for Aug. 7, when the court once again failed to provide him with an interpreter. He eventually took the stand without one, and both tickets were dismissed, according to his complaint.
However, he alleges the experience caused him "shame, anxiety, frustration, emotional distress, fear and discrimination", and that the court failed to implement fair practices and provide proper training to staff.
In a statement, Ali's New York-based law firm Eisenberg & Baum called the alleged lack of proper accommodations for deaf defendants a "sad reality" in many courthouses across the country.
"Court systems are designated to protect citizens from civil wrongs and in this instance, they are the ones whom have violated our clients rights," they said. "Our client's hope is that this case will spread a clear message across the country that illegal discrimination in the Courts of any kind against Deaf individuals is unacceptable."
Municipal Court Director James Simpson could not immediately be reached for comment. A city spokesperson acknowledged a request but did not immediately offer a response.
Ali is seeking unspecified damages.
Dan Ivers may be reached at divers@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @DanIversNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
