Woman Tells of Md. Judge Denying Her an Interpreter

When she appeared before Prince George's District Court Judge Richard A. Palumbo on Aug. 8 to seek a civil peace order against a neighbor she accused of harassing her with racial slurs, Maria Delcid acknowledged that she speaks and understands English.

But, Delcid said in an interview yesterday, she asked for an interpreter because Spanish is her native tongue, and, in a legal setting, she didn't want to take the chance of being confused or of missing a nuance.

"I wanted to be sure I understood everything that was said to me in court," Delcid, 34, said in an interview conducted in Spanish.

Delcid said she was surprised and felt she was being discriminated against when Palumbo initially prohibited her from using an interpreter without his explicit permission. Palumbo subsequently did allow her to use an interpreter for the rest of the hearing.

Palumbo's conduct in Delcid's case was cited as a prime example of his alleged "clear bias" against non-English-speaking women in a petition filed Monday with the Maryland Judicial Disabilities Commission, which investigates allegations of judicial misconduct. Palumbo was temporarily removed from the bench last month amid controversy over a ruling in a domestic violence case and other issues.

The petition, filed by the House of Ruth Domestic Violence Legal Clinic, also alleges that Palumbo made insensitive comments to a partially paralyzed man who was seeking a protective order; that he rejected applications for protective orders based on an erroneous understanding of the law; and that he routinely made disparaging comments about women.

Palumbo's attorney, William C. Brennan, said he could not comment because he had not seen a full transcript of the Delcid hearing.

When Delcid appeared before Palumbo in a Hyattsville courtroom, she had a temporary peace order in place against a neighbor, said Jennifer Goolie, Delcid's attorney for the hearing.

Delcid, who runs a trash-hauling business with her husband, was seeking a peace order that would last six months, Goolie said.

In July, Delcid had gone to a county police substation in Langley Park and, with the help of a volunteer attorney, filed an application for a peace order against the neighbor.

In the application, Delcid alleged that the neighbor had come to her home to "racially harass me," Goolie said. Delcid said that the neighbor said he didn't want Hispanics in the neighborhood and that the neighbor and his wife took photos of people who visited her and her family, Goolie said.

In an interview, Delcid said the neighbor also threatened to call immigration authorities about her. Delcid said she is in the country legally, has a work permit and a Social Security number and has applied for permanent legal residency.