By Quinn Hogan and Bryan Miller
MODESTO, CA – A hearing held last week at Stanislaus County Superior Court dealt with an accused man’s repeated failures to appear in court after being released from custody on bail—his defense claimed the man believed he didn’t have to come back to court to deal with several misdemeanor cases.
Deputy Public Defender Steven Brian Miran Balogh argued the accused, who speaks predominantly Spanish and requires the use of an interpreter, did not understand that being released from jail did not necessarily mean the end of criminal proceedings because this was never explained to him in Spanish.
DPD Balogh described this alleged lack of appropriate communication as violation of the Civil Rights Act, which forbids language discrimination.
“My client does not speak enough English for me to even direct him around the courtroom without a translator,” said DPD Balogh.
Deputy District Attorney Matthew Isaac Jacob, meanwhile, argued the accused signed agreements to appear in court, and would have been made aware that criminal proceedings were continuing even after he was released on bail.
Judge Jeff Mangar decided that he needed time to deliberate, and another hearing was set for June 5.
According to DPD Balogh, none of the citations or orders to appear presented to his client were in Spanish, nor was there any evidence that the workings of the justice system had been explained to him clearly in Spanish when he had been previously arrested and booked.
“Incarceration is legal notice of the initiation of criminal proceedings. However, common sense dictates that somebody without any prior contact with the criminal legal system would be more likely to believe no charges are being pursued when they are released from jail,” DPD Balogh added.
DDA Jacob explained the accused had been arrested in 2013, 2016, 2017 and 2023, and argued that during those arrests the need for him to appear in court after being released on bail would have been explained.
DDA Jacob also asserted that, although agreements signed by the accused were in English, he would still have been able to understand that he was expected to appear at a given time on a given date.
“It’s not required for (the accused) to understand every last word” of an agreement to appear, said DDA Jacob.
“Very few arrests occur the way we see on TV,” DPD Balogh replied. “I have no knowledge that he would have been made aware of any prior cases at the time of booking for a current offense.”
DDA Jacob added Spanish speaking officers would have been present at the time of arrest, but DPD Balogh responded that no evidence of this had been revealed through discovery.
“I object to the idea that anyone can be presumed to speak a language. I don’t see that mentioned anywhere in the police report. I don’t think the People have the right to that assumption,” said DPD Balogh.
Ultimately, the matter was left unresolved as Judge Jeff Mangar said he would take time to review the case and set another hearing for June 5.
