Deaf woman receives $150,000 settlement after being jailed for 5 days without interpreters
THE DAILY MOTH:
A deaf woman, Jennifer Mello, received a $150,000 lawsuit settlement with Kern County, California after she was jailed for five days without an interpreter in 2017. KGET News reported the settlement and I reached out to Mello for an interview.
JENNIFER MELLO:
My name is Jennifer Mello. I am from Bakersfield, California.
THE DAILY MOTH:
I asked Mello what happened in 2017, why she was arrested .
JENNIFER MELLO:
Yes. I got into a fight with my partner. They wounded me. I got frustrated so I called the police because they wouldn’t allow me to get outside for fresh air. Three officers showed up and knocked on my door. When I opened it, I was so happy and grateful for their help. They said I could go outside. I told the officers I was deaf. I made it clear that I was deaf. The officers nodded. One officer went inside to talk with my partner. I was standing outside and one officer verbally spoke to me and I explained that I couldn’t hear. The officer spoke angrily at me. I told the officer to stop, I can’t hear. I said I would go inside to get a paper so we could communicate on pen and paper. When I walked inside, the officer yelled towards the officer who was inside, and they pushed me on my chest. They had the nerve. I asked them to write on a paper, but they told me to “go!” So I turned around, walked, and stood. The officers told me to turn around and they arrested me for that!
THE DAILY MOTH:
Mello said at the jail, she felt oppressed.
JENNIFER MELLO:
They gave me my booking number and the other information. I was then sent to talk with an officer and the same thing happened again. They spoke towards me and I said I was deaf. Then suddenly another officer grabbed my arms and slammed it on a countertop. I was like, take it easy! They were supposed to just use a pen and paper instead of being physical. I tried to pull my arms so I could sign, “I’m deaf!” But they slammed my arms down again. They then decided to give me an X-ray, do my fingerprints, do a physical search, they went through everything. Why? Is signing a weapon? Oh please.
THE DAILY MOTH:
Mello explained that after five days, she was called to appear before a judge. But as she sat waiting for her turn, she was told that she missed it — they called for her name but there were no interpreters or anyone to notify her. But she was released the following morning because there were no charges against her.
JENNIFER MELLO:
There wasn’t anything to explain the reason why I was arrested. Nothing. So why did they hold me in the jail? I didn’t get a DUI, I was not violent, I didn’t rob anyone. What was my crime? I had no charges at all. So did they put me in jail to “punish” me like a kid on a timeout?
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THE DAILY MOTH:
After this, Mello went to the Bakersfield office of the Greater Los Angeles Agency on Deafness (B-GLAD) and received some guidance on finding an attorney. She said she made sure that her attorney was not from the local area (Bakersfield) because she didn’t want there to be any “backroom deals” going on. Her attorney was from the Los Angeles area. She also wanted the case to be taken into federal court, for the same reasons, so there could be a completely neutral process. After about two years of legal processes and some delays because of Covid-19, there was an opportunity to settle. Mello accepted the $150,000 offer. A portion of that money went to her attorney and the rest went to her. Mello said the settlement would require Kern County to treat deaf people better. I asked her how she felt.
JENNIFER MELLO:
It was justice for my deafness. It’s not just for me, but for all deaf people as well. I want to see them receive better treatment and not face barriers or be treated like a nail being pounded down. I don’t like that. We have suffered enough. Enough is enough.
THE DAILY MOTH:
Thank you for your time, Jennifer Mello, and I’m sorry to see you go through that, being detained without any interpreters. Hopefully Kern County has learned from this and will have better procedures in place for deaf citizens.
https://www.kget.com/news/county-settles-lawsuit-with-deaf-woman-who-said-she-was-refused-interpreter-while-in-custody/