Despite Sato's efforts, the judge ruled that discrimination had not taken place, and suggested that the plaintiffs should learn to speak differently. Sato demonstrated through phonetic analysis that the plaintiffs' speech was intelligible to mainland American English speakers, which supported the case that the plaintiffs had been discriminated against rather than being unqualified for the positions they applied for. National Weather Service for discrimination in hiring. Hallgren, in which two English-speaking plaintiffs from Hawaii sued the U.S. In 1987 Sato served as an expert witness in the case of Kahakua et al. She also advocated for speakers of Hawaii English. Sato worked to elevate the status of Hawaii Creole English, her native language. She also served on the executive committee of the Society of Pidgin and Creole Linguistics. Sato was the editor of the Carrier Pidgin newsletter from 1989 to 1993. Sato was a professor in the department of English as a Second Language at the University of Hawaiʻi for 14 years starting in 1982. in Applied Linguistics at University of California, Los Angeles in 1985.

in linguistics at University of Hawaiʻi in 1978. in linguistics at University of California, Berkeley in 1973, and an M.A. She was married at the time of her death. Sato grew up in Wahiawa and attended Leilehua High School. Sato or Charlene Junko Sato, called 'Charlie' (25 June 1951, in Lahaina – 28 January 1996), was a linguist known for her contributions to pidgin and creole studies.

Pidgin and creole linguistics