Using information from the chart make up a conclusion what they have in common and what is different.

LAW AND SCIENCE

УЧЕБНОE ПОСОБИЕ

ПО АНГЛИЙСКОМУ ЯЗЫКУ

 

 

Авторы: Федотова О.Л., Заикина А.В., Контанистова А.И.

Под общей редакцией Федотовой О.Л.

Настоящее пособие предназначено для обучения студентов старших курсов и аспирантов юридических вузов, специализирующихся в области судебных экспертиз. Подбор тематического материала продиктован специализацией «Судебная экспертиза», в частности судебная автороведческая экспертиза, судебная почерковедческая экспертиза и судебная лингвистическая экспертиза письменных и устных текстов.

Пособие рассчитано на 60 часов аудиторных занятий.

Тексты пособия взяты из оригинальных английских и американских источников печати и Интернет ресурсов.

Тематическое расположение материала обусловлено задачей обеспечить наиболее полное представление об этом новом, очень важном направлении юридической науки – судебной лингвистической экспертизе. Особое внимание уделяется вопросам этики и учебным формам подготовки будущих специалистов.

Цель пособия – обучение языку специальности, реферированию, аннотированию и основополагающим видам чтения, таким как изучающее, ознакомительное и просмотровое с дальнейшим преобразованием полученной информации в формы прагматического характера: отчеты, аннотации, презентации, экспертные заключения, что несомненно способствует формированию коммуникативной компетенции будущих специалистов.

Пособие состоит из шести частей, построенных по единой схеме, каждая из которых включает в себя 5 текстов на английском языке, первый из которых предлагается студентам на изучающее чтение дома со словарем с дальнейшей проработкой в аудитории под руководством преподавателя.

В конце каждой части дается отрывок из статьи на русском языке для реферирования, интервью с ведущими специалистами в области судебной науки для перевода (выступите в качестве переводчика), тесты для проверки усвоенного материала, а также глоссарий профессиональной лексики.

Материал подготовили:

Часть 1, 2 и 6 – О.Л. Федотова

Часть 3 и 4 – А.В. Заикина

Часть 5 - А.И. Контанистова

 

UNIT 1

 

LAW AND SCIENCE

 

TEXT 1

Read and translate the text:

 

LAW AND SCIENCE

The philosophical foundation of the criminal justice system remains to protect the innocent and to ensure that the truth emerges for any matter before the court, thereby ensuring that justice is done. While crime laboratory scientists may pride themselves as being "independent finders of fact," most operate under police ju­risdiction or administration, and many scien­tists, perhaps unconsciously, develop the attitude that they work exclusively for the best interest of the police or the prosecutor.

When emotions overcome reason, a zeal­ous forensic scientist may intentionally or in­advertently deny real justice. Results are misinterpreted, or worse, falsified. Such science may not be easy to spot, since it can only appear through the results of the scientific investigation. While no one can ever attain anything close to a perfect harmony of reason with emotion, forensic scientists at least have a political duty to strike the best balance possible under life's most difficult circumstances. Of course, completely satisfying this duty remains both difficult and elusive. The commitment to ethics should be stressed in the education of a forensic scientist. The values inherent in "good science," including both these moral elements and the nonmoral elements distinguishing reliable from unreli­able scientific practice, should be a part of of­ficial forensic scientific curricula.

In the practical world, only the competence and rigorous honesty of the individuals pre­serve the philosophical basis of the criminal justice system designed to protect the inno­cent and expose the truth about complex ac­tions. The system works if, and only if, morally hon­est individuals hold key positions of power.

Without high ethical standards, forensic scientists may become what is known in the profession as hired guns. The student considering this profession should resist the temptation of selling what­ever opinion is needed by defense or prosecu­tion. Properly educated, experienced scientists may also act as gunslingers through ignorance or misapplication of method. This might involve purposefully omit­ting relevant tests or suppressing relevant re­sults. Many such experts may develop an entirely unjustified sense of their own scien­tific abilities and observational powers.

In the real forensic sciences, individual scientists always work as members of a larger team, perhaps with other specialized scien­tists, law enforcement investigators, prosecu­tors, defense attorneys, judges, juries and the media, each contributing his or her efforts to­ward the bigger picture of a public trial, or an investigation capturing the public interest. The job of a forensic scientist is not one of glamorous celebrity.

 

Notes:

1. hired guns - a person, especially a professional killer, employed to kill-someone.

The noun gun has been slang for a professional criminal since the mid-1800s.

2. gunslinger, is a 20th century name, used in cinema or literature, referring to men in the American Old West who had gained a reputation as being dangerous with a gun.

3. a celebrity is a person who is easily recognized in a society or culture.

 

 

EXERCISES

 

 

1. Give English equivalents from the text to the following Russian terms and word combinations:

 

система уголовного судопроизводства, ученые-криминалисты, прокурор, здравый смысл, намеренно или нечаянно, фальсифицировать, научное исследование, трудный для понимания, связь с этикой, учебный план, искушение, невежество (незнание), следователи правоохранительных органов, адвокаты, присяжные, судебный процесс.

 

 

2. Give Russian equivalents to the following English collocations from the text:

 

1. to protect the innocent

2. to ensure the truth

3. to operate under police ju­risdiction

4. to develop the attitude

5. to do justice

6. to deny real justice

7. to strike the best balance

8. to distinguish reliable from unreli­able scientific practice

9. to omit­ relevant tests

10. to contribute his or her efforts

 

3. Match the word with its definition:

1. expert

2. forensic scientist

3. justice

4. trial

5. judge

6. prosecutor

7. ethics

__________________________________________________________________

a) Public official vested with the authority to hear, determine, and preside over legal matters brought in court.

b) Government attorney who presents the state's case against the defendant in a criminal process

c) A person who applies scientific knowledge and methodology to legal problems and criminal investigations.

d) Branch of philosophy that seeks to determine the correct application of moral notions such as good and bad and right and wrong

e) The upholding of what is just, especially fair treatment and due reward in accordance with honor, standards, or law.

f) A person with a high degree of skill in or knowledge of a certain subject.

g) Examination of evidence and applicable law by a competent tribunal to determine the issue of specified charges or claims.

4. Complete the sentences according to the text and translate them into Russian:

1. When emotions overcome reason, ………………..

2. Most crime laboratory scientists operate under ……………….

3. Forensic scientists at least have a political duty …………………..

4. The values inherent in "good science,"…………………...

5. The system works if, ………………...

6. ………………….. what is known in the profession as hired guns.

7. Properly educated, experienced scientists may also act as ………………..

8. The job of a forensic scientist is …………………..

 

5. Give explanations or definitions to the words given below:

 

 

6. Read the following “wise thoughts”, fill in the gaps with the appropriate words from exercise 5 and agree or disagree with them. Give your grounds:

1. In the 21st Century ____________ can be famous simply by being in the right place at the right time. They are the nobodies, turned somebodies, and are often turned into somebodies based on the ridiculous things they do. - (Andy Warhol)

2. "Most men seem to live according to sense rather than__________." – (St. Thomas Aquinas)

3. "___________ is the best policy. " – (Benjamin Franklin)

4. "If I feel depressed I will sing. If I feel sad I will laugh. If I feel ill I will double my labor. If I feel fear I will plunge ahead. If I feel inferior I will wear new garments. If I feel uncertain I will raise my voice. If I feel poverty I will think of wealth to come. If I feel incompetent I will think of past success. If I feel insignificant I will remember my goals. Today I will be the master of my _____________." – (Og Mandino)

5. "He who lives in ______________ with himself lives in _____________ with the universe." – (Marcus Aurelius)

6. "The higher the building the lower the __________." – (Noel Coward)

7. "Do not worry about avoiding ________________. As you grow older it will avoid you." – (Joey Adams)

 

 

7. Translate sentences into Russian:

 

1. Значение юридической этики состоит в том, что она придает нравственный характер деятельности по осуществлению правосудия, выполнению прокурорских функций, следственной работе, а также и другим видам деятельности, осуществляемой юристами-профессионалами.

2. Юридическая этика способствует правильному формированию сознания, взглядов работников юридической профессии, ориентируя их на неукоснительное соблюдение нравственных норм, обеспечение подлинной справедливости, защиту прав, свобод, чести и достоинства людей, охрану собственной чести и репутации.

3. Этика — философское учение, предметом которого является мораль, а центральной проблемой – Добро и Зло.

4. Однако общественное мнение далеко не всегда справедливо и совсем не служит гарантом нравственности.

5. Моральные нормы — конкретные правила поведения, определяющие, как человек должен вести себя по отношению к обществу, другим людям, самому себе.

6. Мораль – это индивидуальные и общественные формы человеческих отношений, основанные на различении добра и зла.

7. Профессиональная этика должна быть неотъемлемой составной частью подготовки каждого специалиста.

8. Закон по-разному может быть использован: это относится не к закону, а к юристу, который по-своему его толкует и применяет.

 

8. Make up a summary of the text (in English).

 

TEXT 2

 

Read the text and find answers to the questions:

 

1. What kind of relationship do forensic scientists and lawyers have?

2. What is the reason for it?

3. What does adversarial system depend on?

4. What are scientists dependent upon?

5. Do scientists and lawyers operate with the facts in the same way?

6. How can they deal with data?

7. Do they speak different languages?

 

LAWYERS AND SCIENTISTS

All men are liable to error; and most men are, in many points,

by passion or inter­est, under temptation to it.

John Locke (1632-1704)

 

 

Lawyers and forensic scientists enjoy a close, yet often uneasy, relationship. Forensic scien­tists must not forget that lawyers have moral and legal obligations that often generate con­flict and misunderstanding among those with scientific minds. For example, defense law­yers have an obligation to conduct a spirited defense of the accused, especially if they are guilty. Like it or not, the fundamental pur­pose of the criminal justice system is to pro­tect the rights of the accused.

Lawyers work in adversarial situations where the clear objective remains winning a favorable decision for one's client through knowledge of the law. The adversarial system depends for its success upon the vigilance of opposing counsel, who also works toward the same objective. In this sense, law is outcome based. In law, a judge or a jury determines the truth.What juries or judges say, through their verdicts, is what is so. This legal goal has nothing whatever to do with proper, logical, scientific practice.

In sharp contrast to the practice of law, science remains justification based. Reaching the truth, or as close as one can come to it, de­pends upon the available evidence combined with a reliable method and not upon the rhet­oric of persuasion. Scientists remain depend­ent upon data and present their conclusions as tentative, conditional, or probable in na­ture where appropriate. Lawyers, however, represent one of two rival positions arguing for acceptance. They may be operating with a different set of facts. The scientist may pres­ent the data, but the lawyer may argue that the data is inadmissible and prevent the data from becoming evidence. Where a scientist may see a complex issue consisting of many related parts whose interactions may be un­clear to varying degrees, a lawyer may see the issue simply as yes or no, black or white, on or off, true or false. In other cases, what the sci­entist sees as black and white data may be­come more complex in the law's view.

In this sense, at least, forensic scientists and lawyers speak different languages with different objectives, unfortunately using many of the same words. The words truth, fact, certainty, possible, and probable can mean very different things in law and in sci­ence.

 

1. Read the text and decide whether these statements are true (T) or false (F):

 

1. Lawyers have moral and legal obligations that often generate con­flict and misunderstanding among those with scientific minds.

2. The fundamental pur­pose of the criminal justice system is to pro­ve the truth.

3. Lawyers work in adversarial situations where the main aim is to win the case.

4. Law is outcome based meanwhile science remains justification based.

5. Reaching the truth, or as close as one can come to it, de­pends upon the rhet­oric of persuasion.

6. Forensic scientists represent one of two rival positions arguing for acceptance.

7. A scientist may see a complex issue consisting of many related parts whose interactions may be un­clear to varying degrees, a lawyer may see the issue simply.

8. Forensic scientists and lawyers use many of the same words.

 

2. Fill in the chart with appropriate information from the text:

LAWYERS AND SCIENTISTS IN COURT

	SCIENTISTS	LAWYERS
OBJECTIVES
WAYS OF ACHIEVING GOALS
DATA FOR EVIDENCE
LANGUAGE

 

 

TEXT 3

Read the text and find answers to the following questions:

1. Who can be an expert witness?

2. What are the requirements for an expert witness?

3. How can an expert witness reach his/her goals?

4. What is the right of an expert witness?

5. What should an expert witness remember when testifying?

 

EXPERT WITNESS

Regardless of one's role in an investigation, no one can accurately claim to be an expert wit­ness by profession. Expert witnesses, by law, can only be declared such by a judge. There are experts who are not scientists; for exam­ple, experts in office design, river rafting, school bus driving, fashion design, art history, or scuba diving. Of course, there are also ex­perts in the natural sciences and medicine, as well as those with forensic practices. But only the court creates expert witnesses. Forensic scientists first and foremost must remain scientists. Those practicing forensic medicine remain, first and foremost, medical profes­sionals. Forensic scientists and forensic pathologists may or may not be declared ex­pert witnesses by the court.

Expert witnesses are perceived very differently from lay witnesses, both by the law and by the public. It gives you some rights and advantages but imparts added responsibilities. Juries will forgive fear, nervousness, and some confusion in a lay witness, but experts don’t impress much if they show those conditions.

There are three requirements for an expert witness:

a) The witness must qualify as an expert by knowledge, skill, experience, training, or education greater than the average layperson in the area of his or her testimony.

b) The expert must testify to scientific, technical, or other specialized knowledge. The reliability of the testimony is based on valid reasoning and a reliable methodology, as opposed to subjective observations or speculative conclusions.

c) The expert’s testimony must assist the trier of fact, i.e., be relevant to the task of the judge or the jury to understand the evidence or determine disputed facts.

The goal of the expert witness is to communicate to the judge and jury. The single most important way to do this is to use plain language, thereby avoiding what appears to be the hypertechnical language of science.

The expert has a right to state an opinion and give the supporting data and reasons for it, testify in narrative form rather than question and answer (though some judges won’t allow narrative), demand to see and examine any published texts being used to cross-examine you, and refuse to state your opinion until you have been compensated.

Testifying is a chance to teach some receptive folks about our very interesting work. Remember this: 1. you know more about the subject than the lawyer does, 2. juries like scientists more than they like lawyers.

 

1. Fill in the chart with appropriate information from the text:

 

 

TEXT 4

Translate the text in writing:

FORENSIC EXPERTS

An expert is someone knowing more and more

about less and less, eventually knowing everything about nothing.

Attributed to Sir Bernard Spillsbury, MD

Neither natural scientists nor forensic scien­tists start from theories or laws when facing the need to explain some puzzling phenome­non. They start from data. And not from com­monplace data, but from the surprising anomalies raising the puzzles requiring ex­planation. Unusual observations suggest ex­planatory connections to pursue and test. Such connections define evidence, and distinguish data that are evidence from data that remains merely coincidental. In that effort, the natural scientist and the forensic scientist share a fundamental approach belying any simplistic distinction between real science and forensic science.

Usually scientific or other experts offered by attorneys to the court as potential expert witnesses give opinions only within their areas of expertise. Sometimes, lawyers hire an expert simply because the other side hired one first. But, usually, lawyers engage experts when the facts of a case remain unclear, when analytical procedures in some field might help clarify those facts, or when specialized training can help educate the jury in turn to help the jurors make better informed deci­sions. The goal remains to apply some reliable method to those facts to help the court render its decisions. For forensic scientists, it's all about reliable scientific methods.

 

TEXT 5

Anthropology

Forensic anthropologists work with skeletal remains. They identify bones as being human or animal. If animal, they determine the species. If human, they determine from what part of the body the bone originated. If they have the right bones, gender can be determined. Sometimes age can be approximated, and racial characteristics determined; even socioeconomic status may be estimated. If there is an injury to a skeleton or major bones, the anthropologist can help determine the cause of the injury or even death.

Forensic anthropologists do other things besides iden­tifying bones. They also work closely with skulls. It is pos­sible to literally build a face onto a skull, using clay and wooden or plastic pegs of various sizes. Using charts that give average tissue depth figures for various parts of a face, an anthropologist constructs a face and then makes judg­ments as to eye, nose, and mouth characteristics. Facial reconstruction can be useful in helping to identify a missing person from the face built up on the recovered skull.

 

Engineering

Forensic engineers can be valuable in cases where some­thing has gone wrong with a mechanical or structural entity or in cases of automobile crashes. A few years ago, a bal­cony collapsed in the lobby of a hotel in Kansas City. Many people were on the balcony at the time, watching a rock concert going on in the lobby several stories below. Ques­tions arose about why the balcony collapsed. Forensic engi­neers were called in to examine the structural remains of the balcony and the concrete that fell. They concluded that the construction of the balcony was faulty and contributed to its failure. Failure analysis is one of the major contribu­tions that forensic engineers make to the justice system.

The majority of the work of forensic engineers is in the investigation of traffic crashes. Accident reconstruction is used to determine speeds, directions of impact, and who was driving the vehicle at the time of the crash. Insurance companies and police departments use forensic engineers quite extensively in traffic incident investigation.

 

Entomology

When a person dies and the body is exposed to the ele­ments, who gets there first? Not witnesses or detectives: it is flies, usually blowflies. During the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City (Terry Nichols and Timothy McVeigh were convicted of the bombing), bod­ies were buried in the tons of rubble from the collapsed building. Investigators literally followed the flies into the rubble and were able to locate some bodies this way. Flies and other insects lay their eggs in decaying flesh. Differ­ent insects do this at different times. Other insects such as beetles and wasps will attack and feed off the insects and the eggs. Depending upon temperature and other envi­ronmental factors, this parade of visitors takes place at surprisingly consistent time intervals. By inspecting the corpse, forensic entomologists can give a pretty good esti­mate of the postmortem interval, that is, whether the body has been there for many hours or several days.

 

2. Read the text and complete the lists of terms describing each area of science that has forensic applica­tions:

1. Criminalistics - fingerprints, questioned documents,__________________________

__________________________________________________________________

 

2. Pathology - dead bodies, autopsies,_________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

 

3. Anthropology -skeletal remains, ___________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

 

4. Engineering - a mechanical or structural entity, _______________________________

______________________________________________________________________

 

5. Entomology - flies, blowflies, ______________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

 

 

TEXT 4

1. Read the text and answer the questions:

1. What does a forensic scientist do?

2. What feature distinguishes forensic scientists from any other scientist?

3. Where do forensic scientists work?

4. Who is considered to be the grandfather of modern criminalistics?

5. What does a criminalistdo?

6. What does a forensic generalist do?

7. What does an evidence technician do?

 

WHAT IS A FORENSIC SCIENTIST?

 

A forensic scientist examines physical evidence and then testifies about the results of their findings in court. They are in fact defined by the expectation that they may give expert testimony about their examinations and further provide interpretations or opinions under oath. As explained in Thornton (1997):

The single feature that distinguishes forensic scientists from any other scientist is the certain expectation that they will appear in court and testify to their findings and offer an opinion as to the significance of those findings. The forensic scientist will testify not only to what things are, but to what things mean. Forensic science is science exercised on behalf of the law in the just resolution of conflict.

A true forensic scientist is not a policeman, nor are they partial about the outcome of their examinations. They are objective investigators of scientific fact. Subsequently, a forensic scientist may work in a state run crime lab, or they many work in private practice.

There are different kinds of physical evidence, and subsequently there are different kinds of forensic scientists, all variously educated and trained.

The Austrian Jurist Dr. Hans Gross (born Johann Baptist Gustav Gross, 1847-1915), was one of the earliest forensic scientists of modern record. In his ground-breaking text, System Der Kriminalistik published in 1893, he is widely credited with coining the term " criminalistics". Dr. Gross is also widely regarded as the grandfather of modern criminalistics. A criminalist, by his usage, would have been one who studies crime, criminals, and the scientific methods of their identification, apprehension, and prosecution.

In modern use, the scope of the term criminalist has been greatly narrowed. It now refers only to a particular kind of forensic scientist who, according to the American Board of Criminalists (ABC), specializes in one or more of the following areas:

Forensic Biology (serology and/or DNA)

Drug Analysis

Fire Debris Analysis

Trace Evidence (hairs, fibers, paints, & polymers).

A criminalist may or may not be board certified by the ABC. They may also be trained in crime reconstruction related to their areas of specialized knowledge, though this is not always the case. Some may visit crime scenes on a regular basis, and some may never leave their lab station. Most modern criminalists will have a four-year degree of some kind, likely in a hard science like chemistry or biology. However, there are plenty of exceptions. Every lab and agency has their own unique policies and procedures about such things.

 

A forensic generalist is a particular kind of forensic scientist who is broadly trained in a variety of forensic specialties. They are big picture people who can help reconstruct a crime from work performed with the assistance of other forensic scientists, and then direct investigators to forensic specialists as needed. They can also make for good crime lab administrators or directors.

Because of the depth and complexity of criminalistics, the need for specialists is inescapable. There can be serious problems, however, with overspecialization. Persons who have working knowledge of a broad range of criminalistics problems and techniques are also necessary. These people are called generalists. The value of generalists lies in their ability to look at all of the aspects of a complex case and decide what needs to be done, which specialists should be involved, and in which order to carry out the required examinations.

The generalist typically has broad education and training in the major forensic sciences, and will often have a master's or doctorate level education. However, many of those claiming to be generalists have only a law enforcement background with no formal science education. These are often police technicians who have confused their role with that of forensic scientist.

 

As suggested, a related profession is that of evidence technician. An evidence technician is charged with the recognition, documentation, collection, and preservation physical evidence. Sometimes they even have training, though this is not necessary. A full time evidence technician is typically not a forensic scientist, and is not necessarily qualified to examine forensic evidence and interpret its meaning. Evidence technicians may be attached to the police department, the crime lab, or the medical examiners office. They are not necessarily sworn police officers, though they can be. It is common for technicians not to have attended a four-year degree program at a college or university. Some have two year associates degrees, and still others have only on the job training with a high-school diploma. In many jurisdictions, police officers must do this work themselves with little or no forensic training, for lack of specialized assistance.

 

2. Fill in the chart with appropriate information from the text:

JOB	PLACE OF WORK	EDUCATION	RESPONSIBILITIES
A criminalist
A forensic generalist
An evidence technician

TEXT 5

СУДЕБНАЯ ЭКСПЕРТИЗА

СУДЕБНАЯ ЭКСПЕРТИЗА - процессуальное действие, производимое в целях получения заключения по вопросам, имеющим доказательственное значение по делу. Экспертное исследование осуществляется экспертом в порядке, предусмотренном процессуальным законодательством. Основанием для проведения С.э. служит постановление лица, производящего дознание, следователя, прокурора, определение суда о назначении экспертизы. В ходе С.э. на основе специальных научных познаний, необходимых для экспертизы материалов уголовного или гражданского дела, устанавливаются факты, обстоятельства. Предмет С.э. определяется вопросами, поставленными следователем или судом. Объектом экспертизы могут быть вещественные доказательства, части трупа, обстановка места происшествия, сравнительные образцы и т.д.

С.э. проводятся при помощи определенных приемов и с использованием различных технических средств, с учетом предмета экспертизы. Для разных видов С.э. разработана специальная методика, т.е. комплекс методов, которые реализуются в определенной последовательности — по этапам исследования, очередности решения частных задач для определения целого и т.п.

С.э. классифицируются по их предмету, объекту, методике исследования и т.д. По степени общности задач, предмета, объектов, методик исследования различают экспертизы криминалистические, инженерно-технические (судебно - автотехнические и др.), медицинские и психофизиологические, биологические, планово-экономические. Наиболее распространенными являются криминалистические экспертизы.

Экспертиза документов подразделяется на почерковедческую, исследующую почерк на систему движений, проявляющуюся в рукописи (тексте, подписи, цифровых обозначениях), и технико-криминалистическое исследование документов, объектами которого являются тексты документов, оттиски печатей, штампов, телеграфных и почтовых обозначений, машинописные тексты, полиграфическая продукция, а также чернила, пасты, бумага и другие материалы документов. В рамках этих экспертиз в последнее время стали развиваться судебные автороведческие экспертизы для установления автора рукописного или машинописного текста.

Потребности практики пробудили криминалистов к разработке методик исследования ряда объектов, которые составили основу экспертиз, объединенных общим названием — криминалистические экспертизы материалов, веществ и изделий (КЭМВИ). К ним относят такие объекты, как почвы, лакокрасочные материалы, волокна, наркотические вещества, горюче-смазочные материалы и др. В рамках этих экспертиз разработаны методики исследования микрочастиц и микроследов. Данные исследования проводятся с целью определения групповой принадлежности объектов, а в отдельных случаях и для установления тождества.

Помимо криминалистических, по уголовным делам проводятся и другие виды экспертиз, в ходе которых используются знания из различных областей науки и техники.

Судебно-медицинская экспертиза подразделяется на экспертизы трупов, вещественных доказательств медицинского характера, живых лиц, медико-токсикологическую и экспертизу по материалам дела. К вещественным доказательствам медицинского характера относятся следы крови, волосы человека и животных, выделения тела человека, костные и мышечные ткани. Медико-токсилогическая экспертиза проводится в случаях отравления ядами, пищевых отравлений бактериального и небактериального происхождения.

Судебно-психиатрическая экспертиза заключается, главным образом, в обследовании лиц, психическая полноценность которых вызывает сомнение, в определении состояния вменяемости или невменяемости лица. Различают судебно-психиатрические экспертизы обвиняемых (подозреваемых, подсудимых), свидетелей и потерпевших.

В класс инженерно-технических экспертиз входят судебно-автотехническая экспертиза, а также экспертизы по технике безопасности, строительно-технологические, экспертизы взрывов. Перед автотехнической экспертизой ставят вопросы, связанные с исследованием: а) состояния транспортных средств; б) обстановки дорожно-транспортного происшествия; в) механизма происшествия или отдельных его элементов.

В группе финансово-экономических экспертиз при расследовании преступлений чаще всего проводятся судебно-бухгалтерские экспертизы. Выявление излишков и недостач товарно-денежных ценностей, установление размера материального ущерба, причин и условий его образования, определение правильности действий должностных лиц по ведению бухгалтерского учета и контроля - эти и др. задачи решаются экспертами-бухгалтерами, изучающими для этого бухгалтерские операции и различные учетные документы за определенные периоды.

 

5. TEST YOURSELVES:

1. Solve the puzzle and find the hidden word (shadowed):

Horizontal

1) A big picture man who can help to reconstruct a crime.

2) Something legally submitted to a tribunal to ascertain the truth of a matter.

3) Science deals with production, distribution and use of wealth.

4) Solving crimes, examination.

5) Practical use of sciences in industry and building.

 

Hidden vertical word: globally accepted misnomer to forensic science.

 

G

E

E

I

E

2. Read the text:

Forensic science dates as far back as 212 BC, and the earliest account of using fingerprints for the purpose of establishing identity, as far back as the 7th century.

During the Roman Empire, a criminal charged had to plead their case before a group of their public peers. Both the accuser and the accused would give their side of the story. The individual with the best debate (argumentation and delivery) skills would determine the case's outcome. The person with the best forensic skills won, much like lawyers and attorney do, today.

The first written account of combining entomology and medicine for acquiring an analyzing criminal evidence to solve cases has been attributed to a Chinese book, written in 1248, by Song Ci which translated in English to "Collected Cases of Injustice Rectified".

In one account, the case of a sickle murder was solved by a forensic science investigator of the time who instructed everyone to bring their sickles to a specific location. Flies gathered on the sickle with the blood, and ultimately the killer confessed and was brought to justice.

Note: a sickle – серп

1. Determine if the following statement is:

The earliest report on the application of special knowledge in medicine and entomology for investigation of crimes was given in a Chinese book, written in 1248.

g) true

h) false

i) there is no information in the text.

 

2. Determine the main idea of the text:

a) There are a lot of historical examples proving the fact that forensic science can help in solving crimes.

b) Forensic science has a long history.

c) The word “forensic” originated from Latin.

 

3. Read the text and replace Russian words in brackets with their English equivalents:

In the ancient Roman Empire, the Senate used to conduct its meetings in (1. общественном месте) called the forum. Anyone who wanted could listen to the great (2. дебаты) of the day and watch government in action. The term (3. судебный) means "of the forum." In the broadest sense, then, (4. судебная наука) can be defined as the methods of science applied to public matters. Today we use the term to mean the methods of science applied to matters involving (5. система правосудия). In the United States and most other countries, the justice system deals with either (6. вопросами уголовного или гражданского правосудия). Forensic science has its most important applications to the (7. системе уголовного правосудия), and this has been the fuel for the current media type seen in books, TV shows, and movies.

GLOSSARY

1. Forensic science - юр. судебная наука

Forensic science laboratory - лаборатория судебно-медицинской экспертизы

British Academy of Forensic Science - Британская академия судебных наук

Forensic Science Center - экспертно-криминалистический центр

Forensic Sciences Foundation - Фонд судебных наук

Office of Forensic Sciences - экспертно-криминалистическое бюро

2. forensics - криминалистика; судебная медицина

computer forensics - компьютерно-техническая экспертиза

forensics analyst - эксперт-криминалист

Internet Forensics - криминалистическая компьютерная экспертиза следов пребывания в

интернете

Windows Forensics - электронная криминалистическая экспертиза данных под операци-онной системой Windows

nuclear forensics capabilities - система судебного разбирательства в ядерной области

3. forensic (a) - судебный; аналитический

forensic accounting expert examination - судебно-бухгалтерская экспертиза

forensic analysis - криминалистический анализ

forensic anthropologist - судебно-медицинский антрополог

forensic audit - судебно-бухгалтерская экспертиза (процессуальное действие, в ходе которого эксперт-бухгалтер по заданию следователя или судьи изучает первичные бухгалтерские документы для установления фактов, связанных с рассматриваемым делом)

forensic engineer - инженер в области криминалистики

forensic examination - судебная экспертиза

forensic expert - судебный эксперт

forensic expert institution - судебно-экспертное учреждение

forensic facial reconstruction - судебно-экспертная реконструкция лица

forensic information - данные для экспертного анализа

forensic inquiry - судебная экспертиза

forensic laboratory - лаборатория судебной экспертизы

forensic pathology - судебная патологоанатомия

forensic photography - судебная фотография

forensic psychiatric examination - судебно-медицинская экспертиза

forensic psychiatric expert examination - судебно-психиатрическая экспертиза

forensic psychiatry - судебная психиатрия

forensic psychology - судебная психология

forensic report - заключение судебной экспертизы

forensic science laboratory - лаборатория судебно-медицинской экспертизы

forensic statistics - судебная статистика

forensic testimony - показания судебного эксперта

forensic-medical laboratory - судебно-медицинская лаборатория

computer forensic analysis - компьютерно-техническая экспертиза

Central Forensic Customs Administration Центральное экспертно-криминалистическое таможенное управление

4. generalist - универсал; эрудит; человек с широким образованием и кругом интересов,

специалист широкого профиля; эксперт широкого профиля; (мед) - врач общей практики; семейный врач; врач общего профиля

5. impression – юр. восприятие; мнение; представление; след

case of the first impression - дело, по которому не имеется прецедентов

case of the first impression - дело, ставящее новый вопрос права

first impression - рассмотрение дела при отсутствие прецедентов

impressions of traces - оттиски следов

6. physical evidence -вещественное доказательство, физическая улика

tampering with or fabricating physical evidence - фальсификация или фабрикация вещественных доказательств

7. record – (юр) учёт; документ (оформленный надлежащим должностным лицом и служащий доказательством зафиксированного в нем правового акта, сделки, права); досье; отчёт

8. technician – лицо среднего технического персонала

Engineering-technician - инженерно-технический работник

Legal technician - знаток юридической техники

9. trace evidence - следовая улика; трасологическая улика, трасологические доказательства

10. sample – образцы, пробы

blood sample - образец крови

by sample - по образцу

 

UNIT 3

HANDWRITING IN FORENSICS

TEXT 1

HANDWRITING IN FORENSICS

 

A person's handwriting has long been recognized as a form of human identification. Handwriting, like fingerprints, contains a combination of characteristics. One of the first things the forensic scientist looks for is the way the lines form the letters. He looks at strokes, pressure, slants, heights, loops, letter spacing, dotted "i's" and crossed "t's" etc. When analyzing writing style, the forensic scientist looks at the handwriting in general, much like you would look at a painting. Make mental notes of the most outstanding traits and try to get a general feeling of the writer. Then, determine the emotional energy of the writer. This is the most important factor of the personality of the writer. A forensic scientist also looks to see if people make ornaments such as circles etc. The scientist also looks at spelling, punctuation, and grammar. All of these characteristics are useful in identifying the writing of a letter or a document. The examiner must be cognizant of the differences between "class characteristics" and "individual characteristics". Class characteristics are those which are common to a group such as a particular writing system, family grouping, foreign language system, or professional group. Individual characteristics are those which are personal or peculiar letters or letter combinations, which, taken together, would not occur in the writing of another person.

When a forensic scientist suspects a person in a forgery case, one of the first things he does is to get a handwriting sample from that suspect - an exemplar. Usually, the scientist tries to get the suspect to write the same text as the suspected forged document with the same type of writing instrument as the forgery (pencil, ballpoint pen, fountain pen, marker, etc.). If the forensic scientist has enough handwriting samples from the suspect, he can usually determine whether or not the suspect has written certain documents.

 

EXERCISES

 

1. Give English equivalents from the text to the following Russian terms and word combinations:

 

почерк, образец почерка, написание черты, перечеркивающей буквы t, f, общие характеристики, индивидуальные особенности, расстояние между буквами, постановка точки над буквой i, - подделка, опознавание человека, определить эмоциональное состояние, должен знать разницу.

 

2. Match the English words from the text with their Russian equivalents:

 

1. a letter a. петля, округлость

2. a stroke b. наклон

3. pressure c. черта, штрих

4. a slant d. буква

5. a height e. орфография, правописание

6. a loop f. образец

7. spelling g. распознавание, опознавание

8. punctuation h. нажим

9. an exemplar i. высота, верхушка, вершина

10. an identification j. пунктуация

 

 

3. Find the word from exercises 1 and 2 for each definition:

 

1. A line, plane, course, or direction that is other than perpendicular or horizontal; a slope.

2. The writing characteristic of a particular person.

3. The forming of words with letters in an accepted order; orthography.

4. The action or process of identifying.

5. The making of a false writing with the intent to defraud.

6. A written symbol or character representing a speech sound and being a component of an alphabet.

7. A light caressing movement, as of the hand.

8. The distance from the bottom to the top.

9. Something having a shape, order, or path of motion that is circular or curved over on itself.

 

 

4. Fill in the gaps:

 

a) slant, b) letter spacing, c) handwriting samples, d) handwriting, e) individual characteristics, f) identification, g) pressure, h) class characteristics

 

1. The author of the letter is an ambitious achiever, because his _________ is dynamic, strong and cheerful.

2. Handwriting ____________ was one of the factors that led to the capture of the criminal.

3. We developed _________________ that are unique to us and distinguish our handwriting from someone else's.

4. Handwriting identification is a comparison analysis of the questioned writing with known ____________.

5. Different writing characteristics are called handwriting indicators or writing traits. Examples include writing size, __________ and _______________.

6. _______________ belong to the system or style of writing the person learned. They may also be forms or features added to letters by environmental or cultural influences.

7. People who write with wide _______________ reach out to the world and to others. They ask for help when they need it, and are willing to try new things.

 

5. Find synonyms from the text to the following words:

 

pattern, slope, to establish, counterfeit, orthography, penmanship.

 

6. Complete the sentences according to the text:

 

v Handwriting contains …..

v The forensic scientist looks at ….

v Class characteristics are those which ….

v Individual characteristics are those which ….

v When a forensic scientist suspects a person in a forgerycase ….

v If the forensic scientist has enough handwriting samples from the suspect ….

 

 

7. Translate the sentences paying special attention to the meanings of the phrasal verb ‘look’:

1. The forensic scientist looks for is the way the lines form the letters.

2. When analyzing writing style, the forensic scientist looks at the handwriting in general.

3. He looks at strokes, pressure, slants, heights, loops, letter spacing, dotted "i's" and crossed "t's".

4. A forensic scientist also looks to see if people make ornaments such as circles.

5. He looked through the questioned document.

6. Look ahead! This laboratory experiment is very dangerous.

7. I am looking forward to hearing from you soon.

 

8. Translate into English:

1. Почерковедение в криминалистике изучает почерк, разрабатывает методы его исследования с целью раскрытия преступлений или установления конкретных обстоятельств по гражданским делам.

2. Общие признаки почерка характеризуют почерк определенного лица в целом и включают наклон, размер букв, нажим и т. д.

3. Частные признаки почерка отражают особенности движений при написании отдельных букв и их элементов (штрихов).

4. Для проведения экспертизы, ученые отбирают образцы почерка лиц, подозреваемых в подлоге.

5. Эксперты утверждают, что по почерку можно определить эмоциональное состояние человека, его настроение.

6. Криминалисты, исследуя документ, анализируют его стиль, орфографию, пунктуацию, грамматику, общие и частные признаки почерка.

 

 

TEXT 2

Read the text:

TEXT 3

Pre-reading:

Look at the heading of the text. What is the text about?

Do you know what a graphologist is?

Do you know the difference between a graphologist and a document examiner?

 

TEXT 4

TEXT 5

Find the answers to the following questions:

1. What is graphology?
2. What does the word “graphology” mean?
3. What do graphologists believe in?
4. What do strokes, pressure, slant and size indicate?
5. How can handwriting analysis help you?

 

 

GRAPHOLOGY