WATERLOO - A Spanish-speaking defendant is in court and gives a lengthy answer to a question.

The court's Spanish interpreter translates the response succinctly - a little too succinctly. The interpreter obviously has omitted words and phrases, perhaps for the sake of clarity or simplification, or maybe because he doesn't know the exact translation of a legal term such as "forensic evidence."

The stakes, especially in criminal cases, can be high: A person's liberty, which could include their immigration status, is often on the line.

"In criminal court, (lawyers) have to prove charges beyond a reasonable doubt. And leaving something out or interpreting something slightly differently could inject doubt where there shouldn't be any, or certainty where there shouldn't be any," said John Goerdt, judicial planner for the Iowa State Court Administration.

Yet scenes like this do happen, because there are only five federally certified Spanish court interpreters in Iowa, he said. That forces courts to hire people who possess varying levels of skills and training. The courts are not alone. The dearth of interpreters extends to health care and social service agencies.

The Iowa Division of Latino Affairs intends to increase the number and the quality of Spanish interpreters through a new state accreditation program. Set to debut in late summer or fall, the program will require people to take classes to appear on a list of state-approved interpreters.

Rossany Brugger, program planner for the Latino Affairs Division, visited with local agencies last week to spread the word about the program.

The division seeks to sign up about 100 bilingual Iowans for its Qualified General Interpreter course, she said. It will require 150 hours of training, though those hours are subject to change pending approval of the program. The Commission for Latino Affairs will hold a final public hearing March 24 in Des Moines before approving it.

Interpreters who complete the training will be eligible to receive further instruction in health care, judicial or social service interpreting.

"Our goal is to have at least 50 graduates (within two years)," Brugger said.

Goerdt said bilingual people often underestimate the difficulty of interpreting. He noted that interpretation requires people to not only posses a broad vocabulary in two languages, but to also have knowledge of slang in more than a dozen Spanish dialects, and of technical language. He said a good interpreter also must possess the mental agility and stamina to interpret for extended periods of time.

Rosa Maria de Findlay, an interpreter who taught Spanish at the University of Northern Iowa's Price Laboratory School for 35 years, said bilingual people untrained in interpreting may be tempted to give advice or opinions to clients. Resisting that temptation and following an interpreter's code of ethics is something the program will teach.

"It's very important that an interpreter know the conduct," she said. "No advice or opinions - you simply translate."

Demand for these skills is high in the Cedar Valley. To secure an interpreter at El Centro Latinoamericano, for example, people need to call at least three days in advance.

Allen Hospital keeps interpreters on call, and Covenant Medical Center keeps two Spanish interpreters on staff. But when a medical emergency happens late at night, chances are slim that an interpreter will be available at the hospital. So oftentimes, de Findlay will get late-night calls from families to show up at the emergency room.

To meet the growing demand for interpreters, she said more people need to become trained in the field.

"I encourage people to do that," she said. "I'm 70 years old, and sometime I'm going to have to stay in my rocker."

Contact Jens Manuel Krogstad at (319) 291-1580 or jens.krogstad@wcfcourier.com.