Try to let the lawyers know about this request in advance. If you have concerns about your ability to understand the court proceedings in English or express yourself in English, you have the right to ask for a foreign language interpreter. This will also help you think.Īsk for an interpreter. Especially if you have an accent that may be less familiar to some of the people in the court, enunciate and take your time with your testimony. The best testimony in the world will be ineffective if people cannot hear you. Even if you usually have a quiet voice, try to make the extra effort. Although the lawyers will be asking you most of the questions, try to look at the judge (or jury, if it is a jury trial) and speak loudly enough for the farthest juror to hear you easily. Ask anyone who might be accompanying you to avoid joking around. Avoid laughing or saying anything about the case until you are called to the stand. However, wearing clean and neat clothing communicates to the judge that you take what happens in court seriously.īe serious. You do not need to dress in a fancy way or try to look like a different person. Communicating Wellĭress neatly for court. If you have a victim/witness advocate or a lawyer, be sure to follow their instructions. In this piece, we’ll discuss the testifying process itself and what that might look like. These include: learning about the process, preparing a written account of abusive events, building a support system, cutting ties with people who blame you, remembering that abusers are responsible for their actions, freeing yourself from guilt about testifying, establishing clear boundaries with the abuser, and reporting danger red flags so you and your family can be safe as the court date approaches. This previous piece suggested ways you can prepare to testify in court. This can be terrifying and confusing, especially if you still harbor feelings of love mixed in with fear and anger. If you are called to testify in a criminal case related to the domestic violence, your testimony may contribute to putting the person who abused you in jail. In criminal cases where the survivor was victimized by physical or sexual violence, or a property crime such as theft In a criminal child abuse cases where the survivor witnessed felony abuse or is accused of abusing a child In divorce trials (most divorces are settled without trials) In child custody cases where the survivor is arguing for physical or legal custody and/or to limit visitation When requesting an extended or permanent order of protection
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