Look at the extracts from newspapers given below and match them with the suitable word in the brackets.

(robbery, burglary, murder, drug dealing, fraud, terrorism, vandalism)

1. When he opened the door, she shot him three times in the chest. According to the pathologist's report he died instantly.

2. George Males gave the man $50 in return for a small packet of heroin.

3. The two gunmen left the shop with more than $10,000 worth of watches and jewelry.

4. The telephone box had been smashed and there was graffiti all over the walls.

5. He broke into the flat at 3.00 in the morning and took $3,000 from a cupboard.

6. The bank believed Mrs. Smith to be trustworthy. They had no reason to suspect that she had transferred thousands of pounds to false accounts.

7. It was a beautiful day. The sun was shining and people were sitting outside the cafe enjoying the sunshine. Then the bomb went off.

 

Read for Enjoyment

 

Respect for Written Word

A murderer on trial was asked by the judge: "Why did you break into the house and, taking the box with jewels, return to kill the owner?"

"I did it out of respect for the written word", pleaded the defendant.

"What do you mean?"

"It was written on the box "Open After My Death".

UNIT 6

 

For Study

Vocabulary

· offence n - 1. правонарушение; 2. преступление.
offence at common law - преступление, предусмотренное нормами общего права
alleged offence - предполагаемое преступление
minor offence - мелкое правонарушение
syn. crime
e.g. You commit an offence if you do something which is against the law.

· sentence n - 1. наказание; 2. приговор; v. - приговаривать
capital(death) sentence - смертный приговор
nominal(suspended) sentence - условный приговор
to serve a sentence - отбывать наказание
syn. punishment, penalty
e.g. The judge sentenced her to life imprisonment.

· assault n - 1. нападение, нападать; 2. словесное оскорбление и угроза физическим насилием; грозить физическим насилием
assault and battery - оскорбление действием
assault in concert - групповое нападение
e.g. The group of criminals committed an assault which caused very serious injury.

· suspect n - подозреваемый
suspect v - подозревать
e.g. A lot of suspects were interrogated and all of them gave sound evidences.

 

Supply the sentences with the missing words, given in brackets below.

(suspect, offence, sentence, assault)

1. The wrongful act is regarded sometimes as a crime otherwise called an....

2.... must be pronounced in open court by the presiding judge.

3. In the course of interrogation the... confessed in committing the crime.

3. The maximum penalty for... in concert is 8 years imprisonment.

 

Reading Practice

 

Before reading the text "Enforcing the Law" think and say with the help of what establishment people in your country are made to obey the law.

 

Enforcing the Law

1. Governments have many ways of making sure that citizens obey the law. They make the public aware of what the law is and try to encourage social support for law and order. They use police forces to investigate crimes and catch criminals. They authorize courts to complete the investigation of criminal and civil offences and to pass sentences to punish the guilty and deter others. And they make efforts to re-educate and reform people who have broken the law. Which of these is most effective in enforcing the law?

The laws of all countries are to be found in written records - the legal codes of countries with continental systems, the statutes and case judgements of common law countries, warnings on official’s forms, and notices in public buildings. Many people do not know where to find these records and do not find it easy to read them. But ignorance of the law is almost never a defence for breaking it. Governments usually expect citizens to be aware of the laws, which affect their lives. Sometimes this seems very harsh, for example, when the law is very technical. Shopkeepers in England have been prosecuted for selling books on Sunday, although they were allowed to sell magazines. However, there are many laws such as those prohibiting theft, assault and dangerous driving, which simply reflect social and moral attitude to everyday behaviour. In such cases a person knows he is breaking the law, even if he doesn't know exactly which law it is.

2. The police have many functions in the legal process. Though they are mainly concerned with criminal law, they may also be used to enforce judgements made in civil courts. As well as gathering information for offences to be prosecuted in the courts, the police have wide powers to arrest, search and question people suspected of crimes and to control the actions of members of the public during public demonstrations and assemblies. In some countries the police have judicial functions; for example, they may make a decision as to guilt in a driving offence and impose a fine, without the involvement of a court. In Britain, when someone is found in possession of marijuana, the police may confiscate it and issue a formal warning rather than refer the matter to a court.

3. The mere presence of the police is a factor in deterring people from committing offences. In Japan, you are rarely more than a ten-minute walk from a small police station. The city of Tokyo has more policemen than the city of New York. Could this be one reason there is less crime in Japan than in the United States? Comparing the crime figures of different countries is a complex matter. It is necessary to consider not only how many crimes are committed, but also how many are detected and recorded. In 1989,over 13,000 offences were reported in both New Zealand and Sweden for every 100,000 people, compared with less than 200 in Brazil and Argentina, but this does not necessarily mean that South Americans are 650 times more law-abiding. The type of crime is another important factor. Britain has more reported crime in general than Japan but about the same number of murders (1.5 per l00, 000 people compared with 8.6 in the United States and 29 in the Bahamas). Rich countries tend to have more car theft than poor ones.

4. A just legal system needs an independent, honest police force. In countries where the public trusts the police force, they are more likely to report crimes, and it seems that they are also more likely to be law-abiding. Because of their wide powers it would not be difficult for corrupt police forces to falsify evidence against a suspect, to mistreat someone they have arrested, or to accept bribes in return for overlooking offences. In the United States, illegally obtained evidence is not valid in court, but in Britain the court decides whether it is fair to accept such evidence on a case-by-case basis. A confession obtained by force would not be allowed, but one obtained by trickery might.

5. Legal systems usually have codes of conduct for the police, limiting the time and the methods which they can use to question suspects and guaranteeing the suspects access to independent lawyers. In Britain, however, the Police and Criminal Evidence Act, and especially the Prevention of Terrorism Act, give the police some powers to delay access to lawyers. The Police Complaints Authority was set up in 1984 to supervise the investigation of allegations of police misconduct. No police officer or former police officer may be appointed to the authority. However, investigations themselves are carried out by police officers. Of course, private legal action can be taken against a police officer as against any other individual. But many people feel it is difficult to gather evidence against the police.

In some countries, police officers are usually armed, whereas in others they only carry guns when engaged in certain kinds of work. Governments may also make use of the army to enforce the law but this is only done on a regular basis when there is political dissatisfaction with the government, either from a large part of the civilian population, or from a well-armed minority (Northern Ireland).

6. It is also important that the public feels the judiciary is independent and unbiased. Americans feel that the best way of ensuring this is to have elected judges. Britons fear this might lead to politicalization of the judiciary and prefer to have judges appointed by the government on the recommendation of the Lord Chancellor.

Although courts have the highest legal authority, they rely on the power of the prison authorities to enforce their decisions. They can authorize the detention of an individual in order to gather evidence against him, compel him to obey a court order or punish him for a crime.

 

 

Comprehension Check