The ATA Chronicle - July/August 2021 - 18

During the past year,
we learned about
many aspects of video
remote interpreting,
including adapting to
the use of technology,
learning new protocols
and best practices, and
real-life application.
The breakout room
feature was another benefit
when it came to the final
decision to use Zoom for
proceedings. This feature
allows defendants and their
attorneys to have separate
conversations that the
interpreter can be asked to
join when needed to interpret
in the consecutive mode.
This is an advantage because
it ensures that the private
conversations attorneys
have with defendants
remain confidential. (Note:
Zoom's interpreting feature
doesn't work in the breakout
rooms, so the consecutive
mode must be used when
interpreting during these
conversations.)
The breakout room feature
also allows judges to take
care of additional cases
when other parties need to
talk separately. The judge
can then close the breakout
room when it's time for
everyone to reconvene in the
general session.
Everyone at SBSC worked
together to conduct dry runs
and technology testing at
the courthouse and jail, as
well as at the offices of the
district attorney and public
defender. As expected, there
were various technological
challenges, such as issues
with connection quality and
bandwidth, installation of
proper software, setting
special videoconference
rooms for in-custody
defendants, and procuring
computers and headsets.
Training with staff
interpreters started in early
April. Additional training
sessions with clerks, judicial
officers, and IT staff were
scheduled during April and
May to ensure that everyone
18 The ATA Chronicle | July/August 2021
was ready to use Zoom in the
virtual courtroom.
Around this time,
Tracy Clark, manager of
interpreter services at
Ventura County Superior
Court, contacted me for
advice on how to use
Zoom's interpreting feature
so she could authorize the
purchase of the proper
license and offer remote
simultaneous interpreting
in Ventura County courts.
Even though the courts
in Ventura County had
been using Zoom since the
beginning of the pandemic,
Clark explained that they
were still unsure of how
to use the interpreting
feature, so interpreted
court proceedings had
been conducted in the
consecutive rather than
simultaneous mode.
I agreed to provide
training sessions to Ventura
staff and independent
contractor interpreters. I'll
never forget the joy in my
Ventura colleagues' eyes
when they realized how
" easy " it was to perform
simultaneous interpreting
in the virtual courtroom.
After this training, which I
recorded and shared with
administrators, the Ventura
courts decided to acquire
Zoom's business level
license to start using the
interpreting feature.
Meanwhile, in the outside
world, officials from
California predicted that
COVID-19 deaths per day
would peak on April 17, 2020,
thus ensuring that " full social
distancing " (and remote
court proceedings) would last
through May 2020.
The Virtual Courtroom
Around this time, work had
just started on the next
phase for remote court
sessions. In addition to the
tests conducted at the Santa
Barbara Courthouse, several
successful tests were also
performed in Santa Maria
(70+ miles apart), where I
primarily work and reside.
A few judges even proved to
be tech wizards and helped
other judges by holding
special training sessions to
help them get acquainted
with the functions necessary
to handle their virtual
courtrooms in a simpler,
more expeditious way.
Zoom's interpreting
feature was first tested by
a staff interpreter at the
Santa Barbara Courthouse.
This went well and served
as the starting point to
identify potential issues
such as background noise,
choppy audio due to slow
bandwidth, and switching
to the Spanish channel. At
this point, protocols for
remote court proceedings
were drafted, including VRI
guidelines and protocols for
interpreters. My colleague
Lauren Ames drafted an
awesome Zoom guide for
interpreters, and Clark,
who is also a sign language
interpreter, shared VRI
protocols with us.
The IT team at SBSC
worked tirelessly to set
up courtrooms with all
the necessary technology
and audio connections
so that occasional hybrid
court proceedings could
take place. This proved
helpful when in-person and
remote interpreters were
needed at the same time
in cases involving multiple
defendants. Throughout this
www.atanet.org
http://www.atanet.org
The ATA Chronicle - July/August 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The ATA Chronicle - July/August 2021
