Dealing with police, sheriff or courts can be stressful or even frightening for anyone. For Deaf, Deaf-Blind or hard of hearing individuals the stress is compounded by language barriers. In emergency legal situations, clear communication is critical. King County and the City of Seattle recognized this when they first established the Emergency Sign Language Interpreting Program, known as ESLIP.

SignOn: A Sign Language Interpreting Resource, Inc. has coordinated this critical service for the County and Seattle Police since 2005. Legally trained RID certified interpreters are on call, 24 hours a day, 365 days per year. In 2010, SignOn responded to 78 emergency situations in people's homes, at police stations, jails and courts things as varied as from making a report of a crime, for arrest/booking, mental health professional (MHP) assessment of whether someone is a danger to self/others or for filing for a protection order.

This program has provided communication for legal situations since 1998; however it is available only through Seattle Police Department or in UNINCORPORATED King County . That means incorporated cities such as Bellevue , Renton , or Federal Way , and counties such as Pierce or Snohomish are NOT currently covered by ESLIP. If you live in an area that is NOT covered, you should contact local authorities to find out how they provide emergency communication access.

SPD and other first responders should offer interpreting services automatically, but when contacting 911, make sure you let them know you are Deaf, Deaf-Blind or hard of hearing and need interpreting services. Once contacted by the dispatcher, interpreters will arrive on the scene within 30 if inside Seattle ; 45 minutes outside of Seattle .

For more information regarding SignOn's Emergency Sign Language Interpreting Program (ESLIP) contact Karen Carlson at KarenC@signonasl.com or call 206 632-7100 (voice) or 206-445-7434 (video phone).