State v. Russ

¶ 1. This case concerns a deaf person, Jeremy D. Russ, who was shackled during his plea and sentencing hearing and claims that his restraints substantially impeded his ability to communicate by sign language. But such a bare allegation is not borne out by the record. Despite an invitation by the court to let it know if any communication problems ensued, he never expressed any difficulty. Moreover, at the post-conviction hearing, he never called his interpreters to the stand, never called his trial attorney, and did not take the stand himself. Rather, he merely called an expert in sign…