New Jersey Division on Civil Rights sues Millville Over Discrimination

New Jersey Division on Civil Rights sues Millville over alleged bias against Hispanics

TRENTON – An investigation by the state Division on Civil Rights corroborated a judge’s claim that Hispanics faced discrimination in Millville’s municipal court, the agency says in a lawsuit against the city.

“Millville has unlawfully discriminated against litigants on the basis of national origin,” asserts the suit, which seeks unspecified damages for victims of the alleged bias.

It contends a DCR investigation into the alleged bias was more thorough than an earlier review by the state Administrative Office of the Courts, which found “no direct evidence” that Millville court employees were assigning people to in-person hearings on the basis of their Hispanic surnames.

The suit also says the DCR obtained emails and other information that contradict statements to the AOC by court employees, including Administrator Kimberly Hamlyn.

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In a statement Wednesday, Millville said it "takes very seriously allegations of discriminatory treatment in its municipal court or elsewhere in the city."

But it said the state Judiciary "has sole power to oversee the operations of the court."

Under the doctrine of separation of powers, the statement said, "remediation of such a problem must be made by the state Judiciary."

Civil rights division reviewed Millville court operations
The DCR contends litigants “who were or were perceived to be Spanish-speaking” were scheduled for in-person hearings, rather than virtual appearances.

The presence of a translator at the in-person sessions was purportedly a factor in steering Hispanics to those sessions, the lawsuit says.

“The court could have made interpreting services widely available for virtual court proceedings, but it did not,” the lawsuit says.

It says defendants with Hispanic surnames “were almost twice as likely as defendants with non-Hispanic surnames to be scheduled for an in-person court appearance, after controlling for other relevant factors.”

The scheduling system “harmed these litigants, requiring them to take additional time off work, incur additional travel expenses, and arrange childcare,” the Attorney General’s Office said in announcing the lawsuit on Tuesday.“That anyone in the city of Millville had to face discrimination from any public entity is disappointing, disheartening, and unacceptable,” Attorney General Matthew Platkin said in the statement. “Such practices only serve to erode the public’s trust.”

The allegations were first raised publicly in December 2022 by Jason Witcher, then a Millville municipal judge.

Judge filed suit over bias controversy
Witcher sued the AOC in June, saying retaliation over his claims were forcing him to give up a 13-year judicial career. He left the Millville post on Aug. 1.

He says the retaliation included increased monitoring and scrutiny from higher-ups in the judiciary, as well as the denial of accommodations for a medical condition.

A lawyer representing the AOC, William Cook of Haddon Township, has denied any retaliation occurred and has requested dismissal of the suit.

In a court filing, Cook said Witcher “repeatedly refused to cooperate with efforts to discuss his allegations (and) failed to provide any credible basis for his accusations.”

Cook also conducted the AOC’s review of Witcher’s claims, which focused on a period from June to December 2022.

The DCR’s review, in contrast, reviewed court calendars from June 2021 to April 2023.

DCR investigation examined thousands of emails
Among other measures, the agency’s review also looked at more than 14,000 emails from Millville court employees, listened to audio recordings of court dates between July 2021 and December 2022, and interviewed numerous witnesses, the lawsuit says.

The lawsuit cited several emails from Hamlyn, who told the AOC's review that "a person’s last name doesn’t play a part” when in-person appearances are scheduled.

It noted that Hamlyn, in a March 2022 email to the city’s public defender and prosecutor, said, “We have the Spanish Interpreter on Mondays, so I may have to add 1st appearances for Spanish into this schedule.”

In a September 2022 email about the number of people at a court session, Hamlyn noted, “Spanish was in person as well,” the lawsuit says.

It said other emails indicated defense attorneys were familiar with the practice of having Spanish-speaking clients appear in person.

And it cited the experience of one person, identified only as Defendant G, who noted an inability to speak English at a virtual hearing.

“Okay alright,” a court employee responded. “So we’re gonna have to schedule you on a day we have the Spanish interpreter, okay.”

The lawsuit said that exchange was "inconsistent" with testimony provided by several court employees, who said defendants in that position would be served by an online interpreter.

In addition to compensation for defendants, the suit seeks court orders requiring Millville to cease discriminatory practices and to improve its training of court employees.

Witcher’s lawsuit against the AOC alleges a failure to accommodate the judge for a medical condition and constructive discharges, among other claims. It demands unspecified compensatory and punitive damages.

Jim Walsh is a senior reporter with the Courier-Post, Burlington County Times and The Daily Journal. Reach him at jwalsh@cpsj.com.