The police

When someone commits a crime (= breaks the law and does something illegal/against the law/wrong), the police do a number of things.

They investigate the crime (= try to find out what happened and who is responsible). If they catch (= find) the person they believe is responsible for the crime, they will arrest them (= take them to the police station because they think the person has committed the crime).

At the police station, they question them (= ask them questions).

If they are sure that the person committed the crime, the person is charged with the crime (= the police make an official statement that they believe the person committed the crime).

For a serious crime (e.g. murder), the person must then go to court for trial.

In court, the defendant must try to prove (= provide facts to show something is true) that they did not commit the crime. In other words, they must try to prove that they are innocent (opp. guilty). Twelve members of the public (called the jury) listen to the evidence (= information about the crime, for and against) and then make their decision. People who see a crime are witnesses, and they usually give evidence at a trial.

If someone is guilty of a crime, the judge will give the sentence (= the punishment). If a person is guilty of murder, the sentence may be 10-20 years in prison. The person then becomes a prisoner. For crimes that are not serious (called minor offences, e.g. illegal parking), the punishment is usually a fine (= money you have to pay).

1. Draw lines to combine the two halves of the sentences to describe the functions of each.

Who	What
1.The police interrogate	a. arrests, searches, and seizures.
2. The police carry out	b. on the sentence to be imposed.
3. The magistrate sometimes conducts	c. over the court.
4. The prosecutor conducts	d. suspects and witnesses.
5. The suspect has the right	e. the case in court on behalf of the police.
6. The suspect is innocent	f. the investigation in cases of serious criminal offence.
7. The defence counsel assists	g. the suspect from violations of his rights at the hands of law-enforcement personnel.
8. The defence counsel protects	h. the suspect in gathering exonerating evidence.
9. The judge presides	i. to remain silent.
10. The judge decides	j. until proved guilty.
11. The jury decides	k. whether the accused is guilty or not.

An outline of lawmaking process in great britain and the usa

Read the following texts.

Britain

New legislation in Britain usually starts in the House of Lords. In each house a bill is considered in three stages, called readings. The first reading is purely formal, to introduce the bill. The second reading is usually the occasion for debate. After the second reading the bill is examined in detail by a committee.

The bill is then returned to one of the houses for the report stage, when it can be amended. If passed after its third reading, it goes to the other house. Amendments made to a bill by the House of Lords must be considered by the Commons. If the House of Commons does not agree, the bill is altered and sent back to the Lords. In the event of persistent disagreement between the two houses, Commons prevails.

Finally, the bill goes to the reigning monarch for the royal assent. Nowadays the royal assent is merely a formality. In theory the queen could still refuse her consent, but the last monarch to use this power was Queen Anne, who vetoed the unpopular Scottish Militia Bill in 1707.