III. Insert the proper word into the following sentences and explain its meaning with the help of the dictionary
1. The Prosecutor General of Ukraine is dismissed from … by Petro Poroshenko.
2. The Crown Prosecution Service in England and Wales is responsible for … the police on cases for possible prosecution.
3. Many prosecutors are in charge of all phases of a criminal … .
4. The Prosecutor’s Office of Ukraine supervises the observance of … in the execution of judicial decisions in criminal cases.
5. The Prosecutor’s Office of Ukraine represents the … of a citizen or of the State in … .
IV. Find a proper definition for the following words.
1. prosecutor | a) a breach of law or rule; an illegal act |
2. consent | b) a person, esp. a public official, who institutes legal proceedings against someone |
3. trial | c) manage (a situation or problem) |
4. offense | d) a formal examination of evidence by a judge, typically before a jury, in order to decide guilt in a case of criminal or civil proceedings |
5. handle | e) permission for something to happen or agreement to do something |
V. Put the verb into the correct tense form.
1. The Prosecutor General of Ukraine … (to appoint) last month.
2. The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine … (to express) no confidence in the Prosecutor General by the end of last year.
3. The term of authority of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine … (to be) five years.
4. The Prosecutor is out. He … (to represent) the interests of Mr. Valkiv in court at the moment.
5. In the UK the Crown Prosecution Service … (to prosecute) people charged with a criminal offence.
VI. Give a short summary of the text in English.
VII. Retell the text.
Essential vocabulary
accuse of | звинувачувати, висувати обвинувачення у |
abolish | скасовувати |
arrest for | арештовувати за (через) |
charge with | обвинувачувати у |
community service | громадські роботи |
confess to | зізнаватися у |
convict of | визнавати винним у; засуджувати за |
corporal | тілесний |
detention | арешт, тримання під арештом |
deter | застерігати |
execute | виконувати (судове рішення) |
fine | штраф |
guilty of | винний у |
impose | обкладати |
imprisonment | ув’язнення, позбавлення волі (свободи) |
innocent | невинний |
offend | учинити злочин (провину); порушувати (закон) |
offender | правопорушник, злочинець |
parole | звільнення ув’язненого під слово честі |
penalty | покарання, штраф |
prison | тюрма |
prisoner | ув’язнений |
punish | карати, накладати стягнення |
punishment | покарання, кара, стягнення |
release | вивільнення, звільнення (з ув’язнення) |
review | перегляд (судової справи) |
seize | конфісковувати |
sentence | судовий вирок, судове рішення |
sentence to… for | засуджувати до … за |
suspend | (тимчасово) припиняти |
ultimate | остаточний |
Text 2. Punishment
There are several kinds of punishment available to court. In civil cases the most common punishment is fine. For criminal offences fines are also often used when the offence is not a very serious one and when the offender has not been in trouble before. Another kind of punishment available in some countries is community service. This requires the offender to certain amount of unpaid work, usually for a social institution such as hospital. For more serious crimes the usual punishment is imprisonment.
Some prison sentences are suspended: the offender is not sent to prison if he keeps out of trouble for a fixed period of time, but if he does offend again both suspended sentence and any new one will be imposed. The lengths of sentences vary from a few days to a lifetime. However, a life sentence may allow the prisoner to be released after a suitably long period if a review (parole) board agrees his detention no longer serves a purpose. In some countries, such as the Netherlands, living conditions in prison are fairly good because it is felt that deprivation of liberty is punishment in itself and should so be reduced that the prisoner deters the possibility of the re-education and reforming himself. In other countries, conditions are rather bad. Britain and the USA are trying to solve the shortage of space by allowing private companies to open prisons.
In some countries there is also corporal punishment (physical). In Saudi Arabia theft and possession of alcohol may be punished by cutting off the offender’s hand or foot. They believe that it deters others from committing such crimes.
The ultimate penalty is death. But many countries have abolished it or ceased to use the death penalty because the innocent people can be executed by mistake.
I. Answer the questions.
1. What kinds of punishment are mentioned in the text?
2. What punishment is the most common in civil cases?
3. What does the ‘community service’ require from the offender?
4. What does it mean: ‘some prison sentences are suspended’?
5. Why do some countries have abolished the ultimate penalty death?
II. Are these statements true or false according to the text?
1. Fines are not used for criminal offences.
2. Serious crimes foresee for the offender to be sentenced to death penalty in all countries.
3. Prison sentence can be suspended when the offender does not get in trouble for certain period of time.
4. The length of sentences differs according to the seriousness of the crime.
5. Living conditions in prisons are very bad in all countries.