Overcoming Language Barriers in Policing and Building an Effective Language Access Program

Language barriers can impact officer safety, public safety, and the integrity of an investigation and prosecution. The DOJ’s Law Enforcement Language Access Initiative (LELAI) has developed resources and tools that can assist local and state law enforcement agencies in their efforts to provide meaningful language access to individuals with limited English proficiency within their jurisdiction. An initiative led by the Civil Rights Division’s Federal Coordination and Compliance Section in partnership with U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, the resources review the legal obligation to provide language assistance services and offer promising practices for overcoming language barriers.

The Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) is making its resources as well as LELAI’s available. Specifically, the language access resources include the following:

• Roadblocks to Communication Recorded Virtual Training Event which discusses the legal obligation to provide meaningful access to individuals with limited English proficiency, identifies and troubleshoots common translation and interpretation issues, and describes the appropriate use of tools and resources such as bilingual officers and machine translation.
• LEP.gov Web Resources for Law Enforcement Officers provides sample language access plans, policies, and forms; examples of language access settlement agreements; and other resources to help law enforcement draft, revise, or adopt language access policies, plans, and procedures.
• LEP Resource Guide for Law Enforcement that includes guidance on strategies for law enforcement agencies to ensure language access, resources for obtaining language services, and possible funding sources for law enforcement agencies.
• FBI Advice of Rights Forms Translated in 40+ Languages, often referred to as the Miranda warning, this document is used by law enforcement to apprise subjects of their constitutional rights in various types of law enforcement interactions, including arrests and custodial interrogations. The form has been translated by FBI linguists into over 40 languages.
• Letter to Law Enforcement from the Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights that describes a law enforcement agency’s federal civil rights obligations to provide language assistance services to individuals with limited English proficiency.

State, local, and federal law enforcement agencies interested in successful approaches to overcoming language barriers. 

This project was developed in partnership by the U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division’s Federal Coordination and Compliance Section, and Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS), and the National Center for Policing Innovation (NCPI).