STUDENT NOTE & ARTICLE: LOST IN TRANSLATION: NEW MEXICO'S NON-ENGLISH SPEAKING JURORS AND THE RIGHT TO TRANSLATED JURY INSTRUCTIONS

INTRODUCTION Is it less efficient to allow non-English speaking citizens to participate in the jury system? Yes. Does it require more effort from judges and staff? Yes. Does it require more rules and jury instructions? Yes. The question remains whether less efficiency, more effort, and more instructions justify the systematic exclusion of non-English speaking citizens from our jury system. New Mexico has answered the question "no." - The Honorable Justice Edward L. Chávez 1 New Mexico is the only state in the country that constitutionally protects every citizen's right to serve on a jury despite his or her ability to speak the English language. 2 This right is embodied in Article VII, Section 3 of our state constitution, which states that "[t]he right of any citizen of the state to . . . sit upon juries, shall never be restricted, abridged or impaired on account of . . . inability to speak, read or write the English or Spanish languages." 3 The New Mexico Supreme Court has adopted safeguards in order to implement Article VII, Section 3 and protect the right of non-English speaking ("NES") jurors to fully participate in the judicial process. However, these rights are not absolute and must be weighed against other factors, such as the rights of the defendant and cost constraints. In State v. Ortiz-Castillo , the New Mexico Court of Appeals held that a NES citizen's ability to serve as a juror was not "impaired" when the trial court refused ...