Trial witness needs some advice please.

Spanish Eyes · 17-12-2019 09:35PM #1

Hi hope this is the right place.

Anyway, I was a witness to a crime. Guards took a statement and I managed to be able to give a lot of information.

There may be a court case next year. I am partially deaf, that worries me as I may not be able to hear everything asked of me in the witness box. It is actually making me a bit anxious TBH.

I do not use signing. I can hear great on the phone and with headphones but in company and with any background noise I struggle. I am wondering if there is anything the courts will do to assist my inability to hear proceedings properly?

I have been excused from Jury Service with medical evidence because of my hearing loss.

I will contact the Courts Service in the New Year just in case. But wonder about it. Thanks

Victor · 18-12-2019 12:24AM

Mention it before the case to the garda that you are dealing with.

wench · 18-12-2019 12:18PM

You could contact the accessibility officer here, to see what accommodations can be made.
http://www.courts.ie/Courts.ie/Library3.nsf/pagecurrent/1C65B6A925A43A4A80257FB8004AEFDB?opendocument

I was on jury duty in the new Central Courts building last year, and all the witnesses, barristers, judge etc all were speaking into microphones, so it was quite clear.
A couple of people asked the barristers to repeat the question, which wasn't an issue either.

Spanish Eyes · 18-12-2019 07:58PM

Thanks for the reassurance and the information. I actually phoned Courts Service earlier and they could not have been more helpful.

I have nerve damage in the ear and hearing aids do not work for me, so induction loop system won't work, as I thought!

Anyway, they very helpfully said that I should contact the Accessibility officer once the supbpoena arrives and I have a court date, and they would take me into an empty courtroom a week or two beforehand, and replicate the sound systems to see if that will suffice for me. They were so helpful and allayed a lot of my fears.

Kudos to the Courts Service!

randomrb · 19-12-2019 11:44AM

In fairness to the courts system I have always found them to be excellent with accessibility issues. If you can't hear a barristers question the judge will usually give out to them not you, however in the main they are very clear when speaking.

Trial witness needs some advice please.

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