Text 6. The Right to Due Process of Law

I. Read and translate the text.

The right to due process of law protects personal freedom. An accused person has the right to phone his lawyer or relatives and tell them about his arrest. Besides the right to a lawyer, he also has the right to a jury, the right to know his charges, the right to be brought before a magistrate shortly after the arrest, the right to have bail and to call witnesses for the defence. He has the right to food, medical care and proper treatment. Police officers have no right to use force against the detained person. The accused cannot be tried twice for the same offence and punished in a cruel or unusual way.

II. Questions to be answered

1. What is the importance of the right to a due process of law?

2. What are the essential rights of an accused person?

 

Text 7. Parties to the Crime

I. Read and translate the text.

Those who commit a crime are called principals.

Those who advise or order the principal to commit a crime are called accessories.

Those who participate in the commission of a crime are called accomplices.

A person who helps the offender before the commission of a crime is an accessory before the fact.

A person who helps the offender after the commission of a crime is an accessory after the fact.

An accomplice is charged with the same offence as the principal offender.

II. Questions to be answered.

1. What offenders are called principals?

2. What is the role of accessories?

3. What is the function of accomplices?

4. What is the difference between an accessory before the fact and an accessory after the fact?

5. Are an accomplice and the principal offender charged differently?

 

Text 8. Criminal Procedure

I. Read and translate the text.

Criminal procedure is a set of rules that govern the administration of justice. The goal of criminal procedure is to enforce the constitutional rights of suspects and defendants.

Criminal procedure protects suspects from unreasonable searches and arrests and guarantees the right to due process of law (the right to a jury, to a lawyer, to a fair trial, the right against self-incrimination, the right to a plea bargain, and others).

II. Questions to be answered.

1. What is criminal procedure?

2. What is the aim of criminal procedure?

3. Who does criminal procedure protect and what does it guarantee?

 

Text 9. Trial

I. Read and translate the text.

A trial is the cornerstone of justice. There are 2 parties to a trial: the defence and the prosecution. Each party has a lawyer.

There is a difference in criminal proceedings between countries with a common law legal system (the Anglo-Saxon legal system) and countries with a civil law legal system (the continental, or European legal system).

In a common law legal system, the accused is considered innocent until his guilt is proved. In the European legal system, on the contrary, the accused is considered guilty until his innocence is proved.

The role of the judge in these 2 systems is different, too. In the Anglo-American legal procedure the judge is an impartial arbiter between 2 opponents, and the accused is convicted by the public prosecutor. In the European criminal procedure, the judge's role is to convict the accused.

Neither of the 2 systems is perfect. Yet, American lawyers believe that their legal system has an advantage, since it protects the accused from judges and from illegal prosecution by the government.

II. Questions to be answered.

1. What is the importance of trial?

2. How many parties are there to a trial?

3. Is there a difference in criminal proceedings between countries with a common law legal system and countries with a civil law legal system?

4. What does the difference consist in?

5. Is any of the two approaches perfect?

6. Why do American lawyers think that their approach has an advantage?

 

Lesson 5 The Study of Crime and Criminals

Text 1. Criminology

I. Read and translate the text.

Criminology is the study of crime. It studies the causes of crime and the principles of crime control. Criminology appeared in the late 18th century when society began to show interest in the treatment of criminals.

Criminology uses different methods and techniques, such as collection and interpretation of statistics, case study and sociological research.

Criminology has a great practical value. The findings of criminology are used in the work of lawyers, judges, legislators and prison officials. Criminology focuses on the person of the criminal and helps to understand the nature of criminals better. It is also concerned with the study of victims of crime which is called victimology.

II. Questions to be answered.

1. What is criminology and what does it study?

2. When did criminology appear?

3. What methods and techniques are used in criminology?

4. Where are the findings of criminology used?

5. Does criminology focus only on the criminal?

Text 2. The Causes of Crime

I. Read and translate the text.

There are several theories of the causes of crime: the religious theory, the biological theory, the theory of social environment and the modern theory.

The religious theory is the oldest. According to this theory, it is the devil that makes people commit crimes.

Next comes the biological theory. According to this theory, criminals are born and can be recognised by appearance (a retreating forehead, a square chin, rough facial features, the ears that stick out, long hands and muscular body and even left-handedness).

The theory of social environment stresses social reasons for crime, such as poverty and insecurity.

The modern theory explains crime by a number of factors - biological, psychological, cultural, economic and political. It is the most comprehensive theory nowadays.

II. Questions to be answered.

1. What are the most popular theories of the causes of crime?

2. Which of the theories is the oldest?

3. How does the religious theory explain crime?

4. How is crime explained by the biological theory?

5. How can a criminal be recognised according to the biological theory?

6. What are the main causes of crime according to the social environment
theory?

7. What is characteristic of the modern theory of crime?

8. Which of the theories seems to be the most convincing nowadays? Why?