Wright: Deaf Community Backlash
Now that’s really rich! Contact this public defender, Traci Smith (tsmith@minnehahacounty.org) at the Minnehaha County Public Defender’s office. and discourage her from using this tactic. Being deaf doesn’t constitute being “mentally impaired”!! Good Grief. How can people equate deaf as being dimwit nowadays? Think about this. If Daphne Wright is declared mentally ‘challenged’ based on her deafness alone, then how can the jury take the deaf people testifying at her trail seriously? What about the future trials? Will deaf people have credibility again or be dismissed as ‘nothing’? I don’t know Daphne Wright, but from what I’ve heard, she is a scary person with serious anger issues and a history of violence.  elizabeth
Deaf Org. Responds To Wright Death Penalty Issue
Efforts to get the death penalty thrown out in the murder trial of Daphne Wright have led to a backlash within the KELOLAND deaf community.Â
Wright is scheduled to go on trial in March for murder and kidnapping in connection with the death of Darlene VanderGiesen. Wright’s lawyers say the death penalty in this case would be “excessive” and unconstitutional because of her deafness. But others who cannot hear say those legal claims only add to the stigma of living in a silent world.
Court papers filed by Daphne Wright’s lawyers say that people who’ve been deaf since early childhood have severely limited vocabularies and a hard time understanding English. The lawyers call this an “information gap” that “produces a subtle, though highly significant cognitive deficit.” As a result, Wright’s lawyers argue it would be impossible for her to understand the legal process of her trial and therefore, she would be unable to defend herself in a death penalty hearing. But Communication Service for the Deaf say those with longterm deafness are not hindered in their understanding of complex matters, including legal proceedings. Rick Norris of Communication Service for the Deaf said, “I do know that there are a lot of deaf people that feel as if a deaf person should be treated just as a hearing person.”Â
Rick Norris says claims by Wright’s lawyers that deaf people can often have “a lack of basic knowledge of legal terms” only contribute to an unfair and inaccurate stereotype. “You see some language delays in development in early years for some people, but to say that in general deaf people have information gaps, they’re not able to carry on conversations, I think may be a stretch.”Â
Defense lawyers also say that sign language would not help Wright in court. Their motion states “research has shown that forcing an interpreter to attempt to keep pace with the speaker dramatically increases the rate of interpretation errors.”
But Norris says South Dakota has a strong pool of certified professional interpreters who can sign both quickly and accurately inside the courtroom.Â
Wright’s lawyers have found no cases since 1990 of an execution of a person who’s been deaf since early childhood.
 http://www.keloland.com/News/NewsDetail6371.cfm?Id=0,53991Â
another article
Deaf Org. Responds To Wright Death Penalty Issue – 01/18/2007 9:55 PM
01/18/2007Â Â Â
Unique Issues Arise In Wright Case
Daphne Wright’s defense attorneys are challenging a recommendation that she be put to death, if she’s convicted of killing Darlene VanderGiesen. One argument, is because she’s deaf.Â
In this motion, defense lawyers say putting Daphne Wright to death would violate the Eighth Amendment, which prohibits the use of “cruel and unusual punishment.” The defense team says because Wright is deaf, she has limited social skills and could be considered mentally impaired… and that would make it cruel and unusual.Â
“When you add something like a handicap, such as a person being deaf, it really does go above and beyond the procedural safeguards that are otherwise in place,” said Mark Arndt, a former deputy state’s attorney in Lincoln County.Â
Arndt now practices law in Sioux Falls. He says another issue unique to this case is that Wright may not be able to effectively communicate her feelings and reactions to the jury. Wright’s attorneys say her right of due process may be jeopardized, which would violate the Fourteenth Amendment.Â
“I think there is some substance to issues such as a person being handicapped, and whether or not the state can provide the due process to have a fair trial,” Arndt said.Â
And because there’s never been a case like this in South Dakota, the case law may not be as readily available to the defense team.Â
“There’s going to be less of a body of evidence in South Dakota than there may be in some other jurisdictions,” said Arndt.Â
The defense team also filed a second motion, claiming discrimination against Wright’s sexual orientation and race may have played a part in the state’s request for the death penalty.Â
Wright is scheduled to go to trial in March.
http://blog.deafread.com/mishkazena/wp-admin/post.php?action=edit&post=795
From last year:
I DONT KNOW DAPHNE WRIGHT BUT I HEARD LOT ABOUT HER BACKGROUND..
Posted in the Sioux Falls, SD Forum, 14 comments in this discussion.
Now that’s really rich! Contact this public defender, Traci Smith (tsmith@minnehahacounty.org) at the Minnehaha County Public Defender’s office. and discourage her from using this tactic. Being deaf doesn’t constitute being “mentally impaired”!! Good Grief. How can people equate deaf as being dimwit nowadays? Think about this. If Daphne Wright is declared mentally ‘challenged’ based on her deafness alone, then how can the jury take the deaf people testifying at her trail seriously? What about the future trials? Will deaf people have credibility again or be dismissed as ‘nothing’? I don’t know Daphne Wright, but from what I’ve heard, she is a scary person with serious anger issues and a history of violence.  elizabeth
Deaf Org. Responds To Wright Death Penalty Issue
Efforts to get the death penalty thrown out in the murder trial of Daphne Wright have led to a backlash within the KELOLAND deaf community.Â
Wright is scheduled to go on trial in March for murder and kidnapping in connection with the death of Darlene VanderGiesen. Wright’s lawyers say the death penalty in this case would be “excessive” and unconstitutional because of her deafness. But others who cannot hear say those legal claims only add to the stigma of living in a silent world.
Court papers filed by Daphne Wright’s lawyers say that people who’ve been deaf since early childhood have severely limited vocabularies and a hard time understanding English. The lawyers call this an “information gap” that “produces a subtle, though highly significant cognitive deficit.” As a result, Wright’s lawyers argue it would be impossible for her to understand the legal process of her trial and therefore, she would be unable to defend herself in a death penalty hearing. But Communication Service for the Deaf say those with longterm deafness are not hindered in their understanding of complex matters, including legal proceedings. Rick Norris of Communication Service for the Deaf said, “I do know that there are a lot of deaf people that feel as if a deaf person should be treated just as a hearing person.”Â
Rick Norris says claims by Wright’s lawyers that deaf people can often have “a lack of basic knowledge of legal terms” only contribute to an unfair and inaccurate stereotype. “You see some language delays in development in early years for some people, but to say that in general deaf people have information gaps, they’re not able to carry on conversations, I think may be a stretch.”Â
Defense lawyers also say that sign language would not help Wright in court. Their motion states “research has shown that forcing an interpreter to attempt to keep pace with the speaker dramatically increases the rate of interpretation errors.”
But Norris says South Dakota has a strong pool of certified professional interpreters who can sign both quickly and accurately inside the courtroom.Â
Wright’s lawyers have found no cases since 1990 of an execution of a person who’s been deaf since early childhood.
 http://www.keloland.com/News/NewsDetail6371.cfm?Id=0,53991Â
another article
Deaf Org. Responds To Wright Death Penalty Issue – 01/18/2007 9:55 PM
01/18/2007Â Â Â
Unique Issues Arise In Wright Case
Daphne Wright’s defense attorneys are challenging a recommendation that she be put to death, if she’s convicted of killing Darlene VanderGiesen. One argument, is because she’s deaf.Â
In this motion, defense lawyers say putting Daphne Wright to death would violate the Eighth Amendment, which prohibits the use of “cruel and unusual punishment.” The defense team says because Wright is deaf, she has limited social skills and could be considered mentally impaired… and that would make it cruel and unusual.Â
“When you add something like a handicap, such as a person being deaf, it really does go above and beyond the procedural safeguards that are otherwise in place,” said Mark Arndt, a former deputy state’s attorney in Lincoln County.Â
Arndt now practices law in Sioux Falls. He says another issue unique to this case is that Wright may not be able to effectively communicate her feelings and reactions to the jury. Wright’s attorneys say her right of due process may be jeopardized, which would violate the Fourteenth Amendment.Â
“I think there is some substance to issues such as a person being handicapped, and whether or not the state can provide the due process to have a fair trial,” Arndt said.Â
And because there’s never been a case like this in South Dakota, the case law may not be as readily available to the defense team.Â
“There’s going to be less of a body of evidence in South Dakota than there may be in some other jurisdictions,” said Arndt.Â
The defense team also filed a second motion, claiming discrimination against Wright’s sexual orientation and race may have played a part in the state’s request for the death penalty.Â
Wright is scheduled to go to trial in March.
http://blog.deafread.com/mishkazena/wp-admin/post.php?action=edit&post=795
From last year:
I DONT KNOW DAPHNE WRIGHT BUT I HEARD LOT ABOUT HER BACKGROUND..
Posted in the Sioux Falls, SD Forum, 14 comments in this discussion.
January 19th, 2007 at 9:54 am
I dont think many people are realizing how much it can affect us deaf people if darlene gets away with the defense theory. I could see that at ridors’blog, he tried to bring it up, a few people commented on it but others preferred to talk about something else. Is it a difficult topic to talk about or what? Im glad you are trying to bring it back to the table to “wake up” everyone about this case.
January 19th, 2007 at 10:55 am
Mishka Zena,
How well do you know Daphne Wright? Does she have college degree? Has she ever worked as the white collar savy businesslady? Was she involved in any non-profit organization as the President or director?
If any answer is none as above, I believe that her lawyers are doing right thing in order to presevre their client’s life.
January 19th, 2007 at 11:02 am
Deafmommy, a good question. Perhaps cuz Wright and legal issues may not be as interesting.
Mookie, one doesn’t need to be a president or possess a college education to be ‘smart’. I don’t know her but other people who do shared enough information to indicate that she does know the differences between ‘right’ and ‘wrong’. She had allegedly stated in the past she knows enough to manipulate the legal system, which shows intelligence and cunning… Does that sound like a stupid person? Deafness does not equate mental incapacity. If she has developmental limitations, then they should argue that on basis of limited mental intelligence, not based on her deafness. These are two separate categories. Â
January 19th, 2007 at 11:42 am
“If she has developmental limitations, then they should argue that on basis of limited mental intelligence, not based on her deafness”.
That’s much better. Next time to take a deep breath and consider profoundly logically…
January 19th, 2007 at 11:46 am
I’ve stated this from the very beginning “Being deaf doesn’t constitute being “mentally impairedâ€. My message is still the same.
January 19th, 2007 at 12:20 pm
Without having met Daphne, I however recognized the type from previous social work with deaf people “of the streets”.
Like her hearing street counterparts, these people have issues with education, social norms, language, anger management, childhood abuse and frequently substance abuse. Most are average or above average in intelligence.
Whether they know right from wrong is debatable; they know enough to tell you what you want to hear, but emotionally think a different way: “it is the fault of the other person.”
This is a characteristic that has nothing to do with language or education, but is worsened by lack of them.
The court system tries to find simple answers in order to quickly dispose of cases.
In fighting the death penalty, would be best to defend her as one would a hearing suspect and build in deafness as a complicating, not causative factor.
To blame her deafness for her violence is doing the rest of us a huge disservice, besides hurting her case by discounting the value of other deaf witnesses in the trial.
The death penalty is inappopriate morally and in this case because of the many factors and considering availability of life imprisonment without parole.
An argument should be made for life imprisonment with the requirement of psychological rehabilitation.
The defense should also consider examination for medical reasons for this behavior: for example, in the case of the strangler Arthur Shawcross, he was found to have abnormal brain chemicals that predisposed him to murder more than a dozen women.
January 19th, 2007 at 12:25 pm
I’m a trained clinical therapist (deaf myself) and we take courses in testifying in court for legal cases and we were told that most attorneys do not know mental health issues and that they are “ignorant” of such things and they need to call expert witnesses . So have those attorneys called in any experts yet to “educate” them about deafness and how it impacts on a deaf person’s personality development, etc. ??? She does need a mental health evaluation obviously but I agree with others that those lawyers are not helping deaf people with their defense strategy of using deafness as a reason to avoid death penalty.. makes me want to scream ! I prefer life in prison also.
January 19th, 2007 at 12:49 pm
deafmommy, I didn’t talk about it at ridor.com because it’s so heavy and I see a lot of other commenters making comments I already agree with… including MZ’s and other bloggers who also wrote about this.
It is indeed upsetting and I can’t really express it in words very well.
Like Dianrez, I also know several deaf people with similar background and tend to blame it on others when serious problems occur. “I can’t write English very wellâ€. Bull. They can find an interpreter who can communicate at your level. Mother, please.
Anyone remember the murder here in Michigan – I think it was two years ago. Boyfriend wanted her out by a certain date and when she refused and felt threatened, she waited until he slept and stabbed him to death.
They said something about her not understanding Miranda rights with an interpreter (someone please correct me if I’m wrong – I was deeply disturbed by this that I don’t remember the exact details) and the cops got in trouble. But there was a videotape showing her having an attitude and shrugging when asked if she understood.
If Wright does NOT have learning disability or any type of mental retardation, and her communication is in sign language (regardless of the level) – then that should not be the argument! All they need to do is make extra effort to find an interpreter who can translate between her and the hearing parties.
Many ASL’ers are smart but whose English is not strong does not mean they are stupid or limited! I know one ASL guy who could debate very well and very, very knowledgeable, but he can’t really write or read very well in English. You just had to have conversation with him in ASL, period. He is a very smart man, actually.
It does sound to me that this woman is very deeply emotional woman, but again nothing to do with her deafness.
January 19th, 2007 at 1:28 pm
Whether Daphne Wright is mentally retarded or not,
guilty or not, I remain as ever against the capital punishment. I am against the
ancient Babylon’s Hammurabian Codes some of which are still practised in the USA.
Jean Boutcher
January 19th, 2007 at 1:34 pm
“f Wright does NOT have learning disability or any type of mental retardation, and her communication is in sign language (regardless of the level) – then that should not be the argument!”
I re-read that – I was implying that it had to do something with her deafness if she had the above…that was not my intention.
See, I’m not good at writing…
Carl or Joseph can give me an “F”, but not YOU, MZ!!
Not from my favorite blogger!
Seriously, though, they got to stop even mentioning her “deafness”.
If she has problems, then mention them, but don’t use her deafness as an excuse.
Cruel and unusual – indeed…on her behalf!!
Terrorizing people, manipulating the court in the past, and getting away with it!
January 19th, 2007 at 1:37 pm
Jean Boutcher – I’m not really for death penalty (if it were my kids being raped and murdered, I’d kill that f**ker myself and take the death penalty myself)…but still how the lawyers are handling this is just WRONG!
January 19th, 2007 at 1:47 pm
No, Daphne does not have college degree. Never had a stable job. And all that.
She is truly mentally deficient at its best. Maybe delayed development, perhaps. But to associate her mental to deafness is wrong thing to do.
I personally already encountered Daphne once before and she’s nuts, ’nuff said.
But death penalty does not warrant her after all, it was her *first* criminal happenstance. it is obvious that she was targeted because she is lesbian deaf black woman.
R-
January 19th, 2007 at 1:48 pm
And to top it all, how can she be judged by her OWN peers in Sioux Falls where the general attitude sneers down on African americans and lesbians?
Not only that, we must discard Rick Norris’ comments because she is CODA — he does NOT speak for US.
R-
January 19th, 2007 at 2:01 pm
I agreed with you, Ridor – up until you mentioned Rick Norris.
So what if Rick’s CODA? She was stating from experiences with working with deaf people and growing up with them that she knew that they generally do want to be treated equally like hearing people.
Unless you knew her personally and she has something against gay & lesbian people? Even black people?
Can you explain that further?
Thanks!
January 19th, 2007 at 3:39 pm
IamMine: I already explained that there are two groups within the CODAs … they are either the group of elders CODAs who were raised to speak, interpret and help Deaf people and the group of young CODAs who were never relied upon to speak, interpret and help their Deaf parents.
The elder ones, eventually, grew up and often took over the role of Deaf Community’s spokeperson, dictating his/her opinions based on certain few.
Rick Norris is not young CODA, he’s the older generation who has the “tendency” to take over the situation for us.
I dislike that. I have two siblings who are CODAs whom my parents unfortunately relied on them when they were kids — today, they interfered, misinterpreted and decided things for them. And FYI, there are SO many of them.
Fortunately, the younger CODAs are more laidback and genuine in comparison with the older ones.
It is obvious that the local media relied on Rick Norris because he can speak rather than to deal with a deaf individual at CSD.
R-
January 19th, 2007 at 3:46 pm
And by the way, Rick is male, not female.
Not only that, Sioux Falls is small city with a population of 125K. According to a website, only 1.8% of that population is African Americans.
And it is not about Rick against gays or lesbians. It is about the attitude of the community. Did you know that Sioux Falls has a gay bar whose entrance is through an alley? Why not front door? Why back door? I’m sure there are many people in Sioux Falls whose attitude is more of “You do your own life, I do mine.” but they probably will react in disgust if they saw a lesbian couple holding their hands or kissing in public.
It is the way it works in the Great Plains.
I do not think Daphne will be judged fairly by her OWN peers.
R-
January 19th, 2007 at 4:15 pm
I never thought about the ‘closed-minded’ atmosphere being a serious issue, but you are right, Ricky. Her lesbian lifestyle and her race can be viewed unacceptably in an area where both are not embraced openly. These two on top of her being profoundly deaf with limited English skills do put her at a great disadvantage. Hmm….
January 19th, 2007 at 4:33 pm
According to the article linked through Ridor’s blog she has an above average IQ of 110, but she only reads on a 3rd grade level.
This was what concerned me:
“A judge refused, however, to allow more time for courtroom interpretation. Wright’s lawyers argue that decision will further hamper their client’s limited ability to understand and communicate.”
I don’t understand what that means. Are they saying the judge isn’t allowing the sign language interpreter to be there anymore, or he is refusing to allow any slow down so the interpreter can keep up? Either way it is a gross violation of her civil rights and will be grounds for appeal later on.
January 19th, 2007 at 4:51 pm
Yes i remember those “hidden gay bars” in a small town in Texas, my gay friends would také me there. I can see your point about daphne not getting a fair trial. However she committed a very vicious crime that was very hurtful to the victims friends and family. Also i wonder why the prosector came up with the death penalty (are you saying because of her race and lifestyle), if it was a crime of passion, but she deliberately chopped up the body and hid it. Would a straight and white female be prosected for death penalty if she did this to a white male? Im not sure.
January 19th, 2007 at 4:57 pm
“it is obvious that she was targeted because she is lesbian deaf black woman.” By Ricky Taylor
If she is being targeted because of her Lesbian Deaf Black Woman then she needs find a good lawyer. There are many good Deaf Lawyers can help her.
But using us, Deaf community, as incompetence, and try to play with court, We must stop to accept the labels (that can cause spread out like a fire) that some hearing people give us. We as Deaf people, tell the eyes of law that we are competence.
If she is innocent or she is really incompetence, she has to prove it just like a hearing person. She is guilty as charge, she must fight just equal as a hearing person to avoid the death penalty.
Aidan Mack
January 19th, 2007 at 5:01 pm
There was a white couple who got murdered, chopped up, and discarded in garage dumps in Maryland several years ago. Another white couple was convicted of these grisly murders, but I cannot remember if they got the death penalty or not, but I don’t think they did
January 19th, 2007 at 5:06 pm
Thanks, Ricky – I do remember reading your blog on about the older CODA generation.
Thanks for pointing that out and telling me about the history down there. And I stand corrected on the gender of that person.
This is getting more complicated.
Yes, she committed a horrible crime and should pay for it, no doubt about it.
And I have to agree with Aidan here, too – but she needs a better lawyer and for us in the deaf community – we need to write or email someone, even to a newspaper.
…or demand that she have this trial in DIFFERENT state. I recall this happening to Scott who murdered his pregnant wife in California. Anyone remember that?
This has to be corrected – we cannot allow them to treat us like mentally retarded people because of our deafness and weak English.
But her being black and lesbian in a town where they are despised to the bone would definitely not give her a fair trial.
January 19th, 2007 at 5:07 pm
m, yikes. The judge is violating ADA. I’ve contacted the public defender and offered her contacts to different lawyers who have extensive expertise working with deaf clients. It is very important that Wright get a fair trail and not be put at a disadvantage due to the legal system’s ignorance of deafness, deaf culture, and civil rights.
January 19th, 2007 at 5:18 pm
Oh, IamMine, if by “Joseph” you were referring to me, I would never give you an F. I once taught a sign language class and it hurt me greatly to give a student just a B grade. I realize that I would never want to be a teacher. I would be too coward to give any grade less than A. I will stick with software that can only understand logic.
Joseph Pietro Riolo
josephpietrojeungriolo@gmail.com
Public domain notice: I put all of my expressions in this post in the public domain.
January 19th, 2007 at 5:30 pm
Not to hijack this serious discussion, MZ, but I gotta respond to Joseph!
Yes, I was referring to you!
I get off way too easy…
But no death penalty for me!
MZ – kudos to you for contacting them and informing them of appropriate contacts and information!
I am ashamed that I don’t know my FULL rights as an Amercian.
That is scary for today…with so many serious issues to deal with…
January 19th, 2007 at 5:38 pm
Iam, The Dupree murder trial was a fiasco due to mistakes made by the legal interpreters. At that time, legal interpreting field was very new. Did Dupree got justice at the end or not? We will never know because so many deaf people who testified said, after reading the transcripts, that they were misunderstood by the interpreters who translated their testimonies incorrectly. That have always bothered me a lot since then.
Now that they are asking for death penalty, it is even more imperative that Daphne get a fair trial. She has three major negatives, perhaps more, against her before the trail even starts and that’s very scary!
January 19th, 2007 at 5:48 pm
“The defense team also filed a second motion, claiming discrimination against Wright’s sexual orientation and race may have played a part in the state’s request for the death penalty”
From what I re-read the article above, it sounds like that this defense team knows their stuff. Also it looks like Daphne has a good lawyer as they are trying to use this to help her get off from death penalty. It may not represent very well for the deaf population in general if they use this defense. Defense lawyers would do anything even outrageous stuff to get their client off. Correct me if I am reading this wrong.
January 19th, 2007 at 6:20 pm
According to Brown Eyed (http://browneyedgirl65.livejournal.com/251160.html) who contacted Daphne’s lawyer, the media misunderstood the lawyer. She never meant to equate deafness as mental incompetence.
January 19th, 2007 at 7:31 pm
I’d like to know who is in South Dakota’s “strong pool of certified professional interpreters who can sign both quickly and accurately inside the courtroom”, because there are no certified legal interpreters in South Dakota.
January 19th, 2007 at 9:27 pm
Ahhh, thanks for the update MZ!
How did you find that out so quick?
I didn’t see her blog on DeafRead…how’d you and Aidan get over there so quick?!
SuperDeafReaders?!
Didn’t know they had that feature here… hmm.
Anyway, glad to know it was the stupid media who messed up….
…as ususal!!
January 20th, 2007 at 1:12 am
Generally, lawyers for the defendant pull out all the stops to defend their client the best they know how. That is why the race card was used in the OJ trial…unfair, repulsive and manipulative that it was. So in Daphne’s legal defense…anything goes, even if it offends the deaf commmunity and outrages the public conception of deaf people.
Let’s just give the lawyers information they can use, but stay out of their expertise, which is defending the client using all possible tactics.
Daphne is a damaged person who caused enormous damage, so there will be plenty of homework for her lawyer to find factors that led her to do the murder and use it in her defense.
Generally, murder is not defensible, but neither is the death penalty.
January 20th, 2007 at 10:26 am
Rox, there is none? Yeah, that would be a problem. Let’s hope that arrangements would be made to import certified legal interpreters from out of state. Both the local deaf community and its interpreters need to keep an eye to ensure that Wright gets a fair trial.
January 20th, 2007 at 11:58 am
We will not stay out of the lawyers’ expertise if they try to manipulate the jury and judge that we as Deaf people are incompetence. Daphne can get away from it while Deaf community suffers for its own reputation.
I do expect that she get a fair trial just exactly same as all American citizens have a fair trial.
Using a race card in OJ’s court didn’t measure Black people’s intelligent but blaming on justice and police for picking on Black people because of their color. That is a huge difference.
Daphne’s lawyer blames her deafness for her murder and making Deaf community look bad. That is outrageous.
…But as Daphne’s lawyers says that media twisted the story.
IAMMINE- LOL! MZ and me as SuperDeadReaders…
)
January 20th, 2007 at 1:09 pm
I would like to say few things. I can see most of you had made a strong statement with point of view. Many of us has different perspectives – I understand Rox said that South Dakota has no certified/qualified legal interpreter.
I would like to share one thing: I went to court one of Daphne’s trial and observed two interpreters. They shows that they know what to do with legal system and I did not see any errors or any misinterpretations. Sure, I do know court system has ingroance with deaf culture. I must say that I do not agree with few things what Daphne’s lawyer is trying to do. Does that excuse Daphne’s action? No.. I think the lawyer should point out the histories of injustice that deaf went through.
I have learned from many sources that Daphne does watch news, read newspaper, and read books. I found that she has a long history of criminal records.
One of you said that Judge refused to allow more in court to make sure Daphne understands its procedures. Well, I was at court, I saw 5 interpreters: 2 for the testimonies and for all of courtroom. Other 3 interpreters was with Daphne and her lawyers. State attroney had made objection that it is not necessary to have more time extend to make sure Daphne understands because he pointed out that Daphne shows that she understands and did not ask to repeat or anything. State attorney had pointed out that Daphne has 3 intreperters with her lawyers so Daphne can ask them for clarification. That is why Judge sustained the objection.
I must say: IT IS NO EXCUSE FOR DAPHNE TO MURDER DARLENE. Deafness or limited mentally has nothing to do with it – Daphne knows what right and wrong is about which is count. Daphne should get a fair trial – Let hope so but there is no way for Daphne to walk.
If you would like to ask me something, please let me know – I would be glad to help you out. Daphne’s lawyer MUST be careful with deaf community!
January 20th, 2007 at 3:25 pm
IAMMINE- I mean SuperDeafReaders! Not SuperDeadReader! *flushing*
January 21st, 2007 at 12:35 am
You can check about the legal interpreters for yourself at http://www.rid.org. Do a search for members from SD and the certification for legal interpreting is called SC:L. There are none in SD, in fact, there are only 159 certified legal interpreters in the US. There may be qualified, certified, excellent interpreters in the state, however, there is no way I would EVER trust a certified interpreter without legal certification. Sure, they may look like they know what they’re doing, but how do I know they have been trained in dealing with legal issues? There is no way for me to know when they have made a mistake (unless I have a trusted friend to listen to the interpreter and to watch and understand my signs). And one mistake can screw up the whole trial one way or another. While I hope that Daphne gets the punishment she deserves (I knew Darlene myself), I hope that she will also have a fair trial that she has every right to have.
January 21st, 2007 at 12:57 pm
Hi Rox:
I assume you are from South Dakota? I’ll check out with that website.
Your right, Daphne should get what she deserve for her crime. She would NOT able to walk like get a get-out-of-jailbird card.
Do you like to chat? Just drop me a note. Have a good day.
January 24th, 2007 at 7:56 pm
Daphne Wright is my sister-in-law. All of you said terrible things about her. You guys have no clue at all. IamMine said that she committed a crime. When did you ever see her said that she committed a crime? Daphne never said she did this. So therefore, she didn’t commit any crime. She pleaded not guilty. SH said that she heard from a source that she has a long history of criminal records?? WRONG!! Not one record. Whoever told you that is bull! Ridor, Daphne is not nuts. You are! She is very lovable, funny, enjoyable person to be with. She did have a stable job. She worked at this place for 15 years before she moved to South Dakota. My children adores her. You people have no idea who she is, how can you all judge her by what you have HEARD about her. Try talking to people who knows her well like her family or close friends. GOSH!!
January 25th, 2007 at 10:11 pm
Sister-in-law:
I suggest you to check out Maryland Public Records, That where I found Daphne records.
Are you sure I’m a female, What if I’m a guy? I’m sorry you felt that way – Most time, families tend to protect each others, You may think you know Daphne, but you dont know what she is doing outside of the family.
Challenge me if you want to! Then why the evidence points at Daphne? I saw your post on ohter blog – Daphne is framed – BY WHO?? Framed by WHO?
I would do the same thing if one of my relative had commit a crime. If one of my relative actually did – I would have to accept the fact.
So I suggest you to accept the fact if you realize, somehow, that she had done.
January 26th, 2007 at 6:46 pm
In this country we have mentally retarted citizens sitting on death row . The issue at law is susposed to be whether or not a peson can understand the charges against them and assist in their own defense.
I think use of Terps has extreme limits in a trial such as this. Where you have testimony of multiple people over a long period of time. My attentions span is not good enough to tolerate sitting all day watching a Terp.
Once you get convicted there is little hope of ever getting that reversed. Was there DNA in this case as evidence?
The state is over reaching with the death penality and i hope the Judge will see that issue . If convicted Life would be my choice for her. Then again this country has little compassion and a very vindicative legal system.
February 18th, 2007 at 10:41 pm
Ridor says: “No, Daphne does not have college degree. Never had a stable job. And all that.
She is truly mentally deficient at its best. Maybe delayed development, perhaps.”
Are you serious? That statement alone tells me you know NOTHING of her. That’s a verifiable lie. Perhaps your own mental acuity should be tested for putting such blatant and unfounded lies on this forum. Wow, absolutely unbelievable. Lies!
March 9th, 2007 at 9:11 pm
I hope Daphne gets a fair trial but a communication accessible – MUST HAVE. In comparsion to the white Deaf guy CL who was raised in the upper class family is currently in a jail in NC for murder of his girlfriend. His trial date will be held in August ’07. He is extremely intelligent and his English skill is very high. Like Daphne, he still has to have a communication accessible in court too. His trial has been postponing for nearly three years due to lack of interpreters. I am sure Daphne’s case will be postponed too. Her case is a quite interesting because of her nationality, deafness, lesbian and so on. I like to hear both sides of Daphne and CL’s case.
March 18th, 2007 at 9:20 pm
hey no one needs to talk very negative things abt daphne wright for god’s sake! i mean leave her alone!! u all should know that she has an angry issue and she has it when she was young so will have alot of plms.. she cant be helped the way she is.. i dont know her that well or talk to her in person but i dont have no reason to talk bad things about her.. i dont care if u all dont like the way i said abt her then that would be ur all PROBLEM!
March 18th, 2007 at 9:25 pm
Nobody has the right to kill an innocent person.
If you don’t like the blog and the comments, then don’t come here ::shrug::
March 18th, 2007 at 9:29 pm
hey, i wonder that dw not kind of mental as good common sense really real silly not point mental wrong idea!!!!
March 18th, 2007 at 9:34 pm
oh yea i dont like it becuz people r doing this is just talking bad bad negative negative things!!!! DUH!!!!
March 18th, 2007 at 9:50 pm
Well, perhaps because they’ve met her and didn’t have anything positive to say about her.
March 19th, 2007 at 1:03 am
Or Mishkazena, have you considered the possibility that they are doing precisely what you are doing. ASSUMING that you know something when in actuality, you don’t have a clue. Just as no one has the right to kill another human being, they don’t have the right to just assume and make up things on a forum such as this.
It’s amazing to me how easily you all are to convict someone based on things you’ve supposedly heard or read about.
(last paragraph deleted due to offensive comment)
March 20th, 2007 at 4:57 pm
Now it is you who are assuming. I know for a fact some have already met Daffy and their impression of her are very poor.
March 28th, 2007 at 10:56 am
This is how unfair this whole thing is going to be. You can’t say that she’s going to be heard by a jury of her peers.
03/26/2007
Minorities Underrepresented In Jury Selection
Attorneys have questioned more than 100 potential jurors in the Daphne Wright murder case, but none of them share the suspect’s race.
Wright’s attorneys asked for a mistrial, because the defendant is black, and they say the process was unfair.
The judge denied the request for a mistrial, saying minorities weren’t excluded from the selection process just because of their race — even though two Native Americans were the only non-whites to get questioned.
But the judge approved another request that now extends jury selection into Tuesday.
Monday afternoon, attorneys approved the 59th potential juror. That was the number they needed. Of those 59 people, each side would then eliminate 22, leaving 12 jurors and three alternates to sit through the trial.
But Judge Brad Zell approved the defense’s request for an extra option. Wright’s lawyers will now get to strike down 23 and the prosecution 22, so jury selection will resume Tuesday to find one more potential juror.
Of those 60 people who could decide whether Wright lives or dies, none of them have the same racial background as the defendant. Wright’s lawyers criticized the jury selection process, pointing out that pools did not come close to representing Minnehaha County’s 9.6% minority population.
But during questioning about the death penalty, each potential juror said they could give Wright a fair trial. And if there’s a guilty verdict they’d be able to put aside their personal beliefs, listen to the evidence, then decide whether death or life without parole is the right sentence.
On Tuesday, the last pool of jurors will come in for questioning. And as long as one of them is approved as a potential juror, the selection process will end — three weeks after it started.