If the jury decides that the defendant is guilty, the judge will

give the sentence. For example, if a person is convicted of murder,

the sentence will be many years in prison. The person then becomes

a prisoner and the place he lives in is called a cell. For minor offences

(that is, crime that is not serious, e.g. illegal parking), the

punishment is usually a fine. To fight crime the courts now give

tougher punishments for crimes committed than in the past (e.g.

bigger fines or longer prison sentences). There is capital punishment

(death by electric chair or hanging) for some crimes. If a person

convicted of a crime is put on probation, instead of

punishment, he must behave well for a period of 1-3 years. If he is

convicted of another crime while on probation, he will also be punished

for the original crime. Suspended sentence^ is a prison sentence

of less than two years which does not take effect unless the

convicted person commits another crime during the period specified

by the court. Corporal punishment consists of causing a person

to physical pain, e.g. by whipping. A community service order^ is a

court order to a person convicted of a crime to do a certain number

of hours of work without pay in the local community instead of another

form of punishment.

Common offences like theft, robbery, burglary, shoplifting;

more serious offences such as murder, manslaughter and rape,

crimes against public morals, pollution and traffic offences are aris-

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ing every day in the courts. Thief, robber, burglar, shoplifter, murderer,

rapist are criminals.

People who defend criminals and present evidence are called

barristers (lawyers) or attorneys (in Am Eng).

Notes to the Text

1. Suspended sentence — отсрочка исполнения приговора

или наказания

2. community service order — направление на общественные

работы

Упражнение 1. Поставьте следующие события в правильной последовательности.

1. You are convicted of an offence.

2. You are sentenced to punishment for an offence.

3. You are tried for an offence.

4. You are suspected of an offence.

5. You plead guilty or not guilty to an offence at the trial.

6. You are arrested for an offence.

7. You are accused of an offence (You are charged with an offence).

Упражнение 2. Заполните пропуски.

1. The ... must decide if the accused is innocent or... 2. The police

were sure the man was a ... , but it would be difficult to ... it in

court. 3. Two months later the defendant was sent to court for ...

4, If the accused is convicted of rape, the ... may be at least ten

years in ... 5.... defend people and present... 6. If you park your car

illegally, you will have to pay a ... 7. In Britain it is ... the law to

drive a motor vehicle without insurance. 8. Fortunately, it was only

a minor ... and we were not taken to the police station. 9. The ...

sentences people. 10. I have never ... the law and ... a crime.

11. Police are allowed to stop anyone in the street and ... them.

Упражнение 3. Подберите к словам и словосочетаниям в колонке А

соответствующие по значению из колонки В.

А В

1. wrong а. punishment

2. ask questions b. provide facts

3. commit a crime с kill someone by intention

4. arrest d. question

5. evidence e. investigate

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6. sentence

7. theft

8. rob

9. burgle

10. steal

11. shoplift

12. murder

13. manslaughter

14. capital punishment

15. try to find out what happened

16. prove

f. kill someone by accident

g. break into a shop / house

h. take to the police station

i. steal from a shop when open

j . steal from people or places

k. break the law

1. illegal, against the law

m. information about the crime

n. stealing

o.take

p. death sentence

Упражнение 4. Заполните пропусю!.

1. We think the driver of a BMW will be charged with ... because

he did not mean to kill the boy. 2. Did he kill his partner?

Yes, he has been charged with ... 3. He took the money from

women's bags. He has been charged with ... 4. She stole things from

a supermarket, so she will be charged with... 5. Two boys have been

charged with ... because they broke into a shop in the middle of the

night and took money.

Упражнение 5. Замените выделенные слова и словосочетания близкими

по значению словами или словосочетаниями.