Definitions (Part II)

This is the ASL translation and plain language version of Cobb v Georgia Department of Community Supervision Settlement Agreement.

鈥淓xternal Communication Assessment鈥 means a person, called a Qualified Assessor, will read the paper list of ways to share information with Deaf or Hard of Hearing people to see which work for you. What they think will be written down on paper. That paper will be part of what DCS uses to write a Communication Plan. Paragraphs 2-9 of this Agreement explain more about this.

鈥泪苍迟补办别鈥 means the meeting between you and a DCS officer to start your parole or probation. There could be more than one meeting. DCS will explain how things work and talk to you about what rules you must follow.

鈥淚nternal Communication Assessment鈥 means a kind of Communication Assessment done by the DCS staff person called an ADA Coordinator

鈥淚nternal Intake Assessment鈥 means that the first time a DCS officer meets a person on parole or probation who might be Deaf or Hard of Hearing, the officer may ask some questions about the person鈥檚 hearing and how to share information.

鈥淧resumed to Know Sign Language鈥 means that a person on parole or probation may:

  • use sign language or gesture and the DCS officer sees that
  • agree when the DCS officer asks in spoken English 鈥淒o you know sign language?鈥 or the person looks to not understand the question
  • point, gesture, or nod to an 鈥淎SL interpreter鈥 picture with 鈥淎.S.L.鈥 written in English and finger-spelled below the picture.

鈥淨ualified Assessor鈥 鈥 This person will have a contract with the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities (鈥淒BHDD鈥) to do the External Communication Assessment. This person knows American Sign Language, oral communication, and gestural communication. This person will have done the work before of figuring out how much a Deaf or Hard of Hearing person can read or write. This person will be able to tell DCS the best ways to give information. That might include using Qualified Interpreters.

鈥淨ualified Individual with a Disability鈥 鈥 This is a legal term copied from a law that you can find at 42 U.S.C. 搂 12131(2). This means there are some legal rules about if a person has a disability. If the law agrees, a person with a disability will get services or be a part of programs in a way that helps the person with a disability share information. This rule is for government organizations providing services or programs.

鈥淨ualified Interpreter鈥 means an interpreter who can interpret in a way that works well for the people sharing information together. The interpreter must get the information right. The interpreter must not help one side or the other. The interpreter should work well with English and ASL. The interpreter must understand the words used in each meeting by all people.

The interpreter must work with the deaf or hard of hearing person鈥檚 language needs well. The interpreter will be in the same room as the people sharing information, or the interpreter will be on a video screen. An 鈥渋nterpreter鈥 can mean someone who works with sign language, someone who works with deaf people who need to read lips only, or someone who works with cued speech.

Another law in the State of Georgia, O.C.G.A. 搂 24-6-651, also says that a 鈥淨ualified Interpreter鈥 is someone who has been tested and passed by the Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf or someone that a court has said can interpret. This Agreement also says that a Certified Deaf Interpreter (鈥淐DI鈥) is also a Qualified Interpreter.

鈥淯nplanned Critical Interaction鈥 means a Critical Interaction with DCS and a Deaf or Hard of Hearing person on parole or probation where DCS did not have enough time for DCS to use the best way to share information like DCS has to do for a Critical Interaction.

鈥淰ideo Remote Interpreting鈥/ 鈥淰RI鈥 means a video service that will let a hearing person and a deaf person be in the same room at the same time and then connect with an interpreter who is somewhere else. This service costs money.