Longmont police officer Edna Muñoz is one of a handful of employees at the department who speaks fluent Spanish, and she uses it on the job at least once, but often several times a shift.
While any officer has access to a telephone interpreter service, Muñoz said subtle clues such as a victim’s body language while he or she talks to police can go unnoticed. That can have a negative impact on an investigation, she said.
“It’s always better to have someone there who is going to understand and not make it seem so robotic,” Muñoz said. “This is another human being in front of you asking questions and holding your hand if needed and to saying ‘It’s OK. We are here to help’ and have them believe it.”
Longmont Police Services technician Reyna Temu grew up speaking Spanish at home and said she will generally help a Spanish-speaking resident once a day inside the Safety and Justice Center. She said she also will occasionally make a phone call for coworkers.
“I get a lot of requests to translate for the report takers,” she said. “They need a little additional information, and I’m able to do that. … We have a translation line, but we do prefer to have someone in the building translate because we feel the customer service is better.”
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![[prison 19] Caption: This is Cellhouse 1, Pod A, from ground level inside the Sterling Correctional Facility which is located outside of Sterling, Colorado Thursday afternoon. Photographer: LEW SHERMAN Title: FREELANCE Credit: SPECIAL TO THE POST City: Sterling State: CO Country: USA Date: 19990617 ObjectName: prison 19 Keyword: PUBDATE____1999_06_22](/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/20151207__denverpostp1.jpg?w=538 "20151207__denverpost~p1.jpg")
