Criminal charges across the province are in jeopardy as the courts grapple with a desperate shortage of accredited interpreters. The ministry’s propgrambretesting of interpreters resulted in many losing their accreditation.

The shortage is causing serious problems within the court system, leading to charges being thrown out or bargained down to a lesser charge. Some cases have been adjourned by the courts for a lack of interpreters, but he’s unaware of any charges being dismissed.

Defence lawyers are insisting that a ministry-accredited interpreter be used in the courts, and the Crown’s delay in producing one causing a backlog. The accused has a constitutional right to be tried within a reasonable time frame or the charges can be thrown out by the courts.

See: Toronto Sun