Felonies Misdemeanors
Admit of accessories Do not
Admit of arrest without a Do not
warrant
Civil proceedings cannot be Does not apply
taken against an offender be
fore criminal proceedings
Cannot be tried on a criminal Can be so tried
information
Notes:
indictable — преследуемый по обвинительному акту
Treason — преступление против государства
accessory — соучастник преступления
Text 4: Read and say what you think about it:
I. According to the British laws a person cannot be tried twice or more times on the same charge. If he has been tried and found not guilty he may not be brought before a court if new evidence of great importance has been obtained to prove his guilt.
II. The law is not something that can be changed at will (произвольно).
Laws should govern people and not on the contrary. People are equal before the law.
Dura lex, sed lex (Strict is the law, but a law) — is a saying of Ancient Rome.
"The law is the last result of human wisdom (мудрость) acting upon human experience for the benefit (на благо) of the public", — these words belong to the celebrated English author Samuel Johnson.
In these and other sayings is reflected people's respect of law and justice. There is widespread belief that observance of laws is a guarantee against injustice.
Still, this is only one aspect of the problem. The problem is whether the social and state system of the country prevents violation of the law and guarantees the right way of administering justice. Not in every society the formula "All are equal before the law" is effective though it is proclaimed in constitutions.
Yet there are instances when laws are illegal themselves.
Such laws cannot be respected.
III. In actual practice a great number of arrests are made by the police without an arrest warrant. Arrest without a warrant is permitted in "special circumstances", such as situations in which:
1. The attempt (покушение) or actual commission of a crime occurs in the presence of a police officer.
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2. There is probable cause for the police officer to believe that a crime is being committed in his presence.
3. Though the crime has not been committed in his presence, there is probable cause for the police to believe it has been committed and that a person to be arrested has done it. The courts have ruled that exceptions (исключения) to the need for an arrest are justified by the circumstances. The most basic exception is that police action is needed to prevent the commission of a criminal act. Other reasons include the realization that if the police did not act, it is highly probable that the person to be arrested would escape (сбегать), that the person would cause other people to be harmed (пострадать) or that evidence of the crime would be destroyed.
Text 5:
The criminal justice system is composed of those agencies which must enforce the laws that society has enacted for its self-protection and preservation. Theoretically, it is an integrated apparatus whose functions are to apprehend, prosecute, convict, sentence, and correct offenders. The US system is federal by its nature, i.e. it consists of three subsystems: state, local and federal criminal justice agencies. The system is composed of three components: police, court, corrections. Each component must contribute to the same goal — the prevention and control of crime and the rehabilitation of offenders. So the effectiveness of the whole system depends on the efficient functioning of each component and their efficient interaction. But at present the criminal justice system doesn't work successfully. Of the several million serious crimes reported every year to police, ranging from murder to car theft, only one in nine results in a conviction. The rate of solution varies with different crimes. Murder is usually reported, and 86 per cent of all reported murders lead to arrests. Among those arrested, however, only 64 per cent are prosecuted and not more than 43 per cent of the cases prosecuted result in convictions. Of persons prosecuted for murder 19 per cent are convicted of a lesser crime and 38 per cent are acquitted or dismissed. In contrast, only 19 per cent of all the burglaries reported to police lead to an arrest. Four out of five arrested are prosecuted and 56 per cent are found guilty. So, for every twelve burglaries reported there is one conviction. Robbery — taking property from a person by force or threat of force — is a crime of violence, dangerous to life and increasing rapidly. But chances of a robber being convicted are small. Only 27 per cent of all robberies lead to an arrest. Of those arrested, 63 per cent are prosecuted, of whom one-half are convicted. Less than two-thirds of the cases in which individuals are charged with murder and robbery are prosecutable. Often the reasons are: insufficient evidence, mistaken identity, unprofessional work of law enforcement agencies, etc. Long delays in trials may lead to dismissals because witnesses die or disappear, evidence is stale or lost. When we consider the performance of correctional agencies, the failure of the criminal justice system becomes quite evident. While there may be only one conviction for every fifty or more serious crimes, only one in four convicted will go to prison, and most who are imprisoned will commit crimes after their release. Thus from among the very small portion of all the people who commit serious crimes and are finally imprisoned, the system fails to rehabilitate the majority.
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Exercise 10: Find English equivalents in the text:
С применением силы или под угрозой силы; преступления, регистрируемые ежегодно полицией; коэффициент раскрываемости; длительные задержки в судебном разбирательстве; быть обвиненным в убийстве или грабеже; приводить к осуждению; предупреждение и борьба с преступлениями.
Text 6: Read the text and do a written translation:
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