‘Were a diverse town, a lot of walks of life here’: interpreters help bridge Lexington Police Department to the community
The Lexington Police Department is looking to hire more officers who know a second language.
Lexington, Ky (WTVQ): The Lexington Police Department is looking to hire more officers who know a second language.
Commander Chris Cooper, the language access coordinator for the department, says almost 25% of Lexington’s population speaks a foreign language. “We’re a diverse town, a lot of walks of life here,” he said. “So, it is extremely important for us as a police department to be able to communicate and be effective and let people feel more comfortable coming to us if they need the police.”
Commander Chris Cooper says that throughout Fayette County there are a little more than 200 languages spoken. The goal is for these interpreters to help bridge Lexington police to the community. “I would imagine it provides some comfort for a citizen passing an officer walking by if they’re able to speak to them if they happen to realize what their nationality is and they speak to them in their home language,” he said.
The Lexington Police Department currently has 12 certified interpreters and one civilian bilingual victim advocate. This advocate is able to reach out to the Hispanic community. Copper says the police want to “make sure that they are able to understand number one just the process of what’s taking place now that this crime has happened, but to know that there are resources and other things available to them.”
In addition to certified personnel, the Department also utilizes a language line that offers a 24-hour service if someone is not available to translate. Cooper says the sky is the limit with the situations that they might encounter. “So, it could be anything from somebody broken down on the side of the road, and need to figure out to get them help roadside,” he said. “Or it could be a domestic violence situation.”
Another resource is Global Lex a multilingual international center that’s a part of the Mayor’s office. If you’re interested in applying you can check out join Lex Pd
