AK · jury_instructions
Alaska Civil Pattern Jury Instruction 2.08A
Credibility of Witnesses - Witness Who Testifies Through Interpreter
In this case, one of the witnesses presented [his] [her] testimony through an interpreter. The interpreter is required to translate between English and [specify other language] accurately and impartially.
You must evaluate interpreted testimony as you would any other testimony. That is, you must not give interpreted testimony any greater or lesser weight than you would if the witness had spoken English.
[A person who speaks or understands limited English also has the right to the services of an interpreter. You must evaluate this testimony as you would any other testimony. That is, you must not give the testimony any greater or lesser weight simply because the witness testified both in English and through an interpreter.]
At times, you may hear a long question or phrase in one language interpreted as a short question or phrase or even a single work in another language. This is normal and should not cause you to doubt the fidelity of the interpretation. For example, the English word for the month of April is interpreted in Navajo as “the month in with the baby eagles are born.” Therefore, the Navajo interpretation would be much longer than the English word “April.”
Some of you may speak the language that is being interpreted. When a witness testifies through an interpreter, you must accept the English interpretation of that testimony even if you would have translated the testimony differently. This ensures that all jurors consider the same evidence.
History
Alaska Civil Pattern Jury Instructions 2.08A, dated Added 1999. Prepared by the Alaska Civil Pattern Jury Instructions Committee; published by the Alaska Court System. The Alaska Court System states that these instructions "have not been approved or promulgated by any court or the Alaska Bar Association."
Provenance
- Source
- courts.alaska.gov
- Retrieved
- 2026-09-24
- Edition
- 2026-09-24
- Content hash
436b0b5d3cec12d6ae2e20bbfe890bf1f61fecfe2caffa526734b45352fccb03
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