Thread: Was language barrier a factor in Tulsa man's death?

TULSA — A Tulsa immigrant who was fatally shot outside his apartment bled for nearly half an hour while his family tried unsuccessfully to reach emergency services due to a language barrier, according to police.


Apparently, none of them had ever heard of 911 emergency service, said officer Jason Willingham.

"I don't think we'll ever know whether this guy would have survived or not with that 30-minute window if we could have got to him sooner," Willingham said.

Ociel Sanchez, 22, was taking out the garbage outside his east Tulsa apartment about 10:30 a.m. Sunday when a man approached him and shot him in the abdomen, Willingham said.

Police think the shooting may have resulted from a robbery, but the motive remains unclear.

Sanchez was able to walk back inside his apartment, where his family frantically tried to call hospitals to get help. It was a full half-hour before they were able to reach emergency dispatchers, who used a translator to communicate with the Spanish-speaking family.

When officers arrived, Sanchez was lying dead on the floor.

The shooter is described as a young black man in his late teens or early 20s, about 6 feet tall with an acne-scarred face. He was last seen wearing a black or dark blue hooded sweatshirt, khaki pants and white tennis shoes.

http://newsok.com/article/3208412/1203981241

Another good reason to learn the language of the land you are in....How difficult is that???????

No.....ignorance. Maybe even not that. I mean my phone book has it in English and Spanish...doesn't all the segregated neighborhoods and special TV and radio stations ever enlighten them? They seem to on everything else.....there's not much we can do if they can't read their own language. Plus it's also a convient excuse to take the focus off the issue and make a good helpless sob story. I mean no neighbors to hear gun shots either?

Sounds like some gang banger just got himself initiated to his gang!
And it is true many spanish speakers are unable to read it.

The shooter is described as a young black man in his late teens or early 20s, about 6 feet tall with an acne-scarred face. He was last seen wearing a black or dark blue hooded sweatshirt, khaki pants and white tennis shoes.

The dots don't quite connect.

*Suspect robbery the motive--who carries a wallet or valuables to take out garbage?

*He was taking the garbage outside when shot about 10:30 AM--daylight.

*He managed to walk back into his apartment--like Crazybird said, in an apartment building, didn't neighbors hear the shot or the family yelling or calling for help? Why didn't a family member seek help of a neighbor?

*How were police given such a good description of the gunman all the way down to his shoes? Did Sanchez give the description to his family or was there a witness?

"This is our culture - fight for it. This is our flag - pick it up. This is our country - take it back." - Congressman Tom Tancredo

There's a lot of stuff they are not telling us right now for some reason!

A Tulsa immigrant who was fatally shot outside his apartment bled for nearly half an hour while his family tried unsuccessfully to reach emergency services due to a language barrier, according to police.

How do other non-english speaking people function in America?

Something is definitely not right here. IF he and his family are here illegally, this is what could have happened. 911 is a number everyone knows, no matter what language they speak.

I'm guessing they did not call 911 because it brings the police. Since it involved a shooting, it would definitely become a police matter and ICE would have been called in.

Wait for the outcry that if OK didn't have the "harsh anti-immigrant law", this man would be alive today. What does their inability to call 911 have to do with immigration laws?

I would believe this story more if it had been anyone EXCEPT English OR Spanish speakers. Everything is already printed in both languages, no excuses.

Sanchez was able to walk back inside his apartment, where his family frantically tried to call hospitals to get help. It was a full half-hour before they were able to reach emergency dispatchers, who used a translator to communicate with the Spanish-speaking family




They didn't know enough to call 911 but were smart enough to be calling hospitals?

I agree that there is something else going on here. Perhaps in that 1/2 hour they had some "housekeeping" to do before police arrived?