Crime & punishment

1. Put the crimes below in order of seriousness. Decide on the punishment you think a person guilty of each crime should get.

mugging swearing in public kidnapping drink driving graffiti creating and releasing computer viruses trespassing dropping litter

2. Compare your answers with a partner.

3. Nine people were asked what punishment they would give people guilty of the above crimes.

1

Well, I think if you do something like go into somebody’s garden without asking them first, then, then I think that it’s not too bad so you shouldn’t, you shouldn’t be punished for it, but I really think that you should go and say sorry.

2

Well, I suppose it’s not really an offence is it, not, not a serious offence? I just think people do it without thinking. Um, they see other people do it so they do it themselves and then you end up with a really filthy street. People should think more about the environment, about their surroundings and perhaps rather than punishing them they should, they should have a deterrent fine or, or, you know, enough of a fine to make them think twice about doing it again, frankly.

3

Well, let’s be honest, it’s the most serious thing you can ever do, isn’t it? I mean it’s the most brutal thing you can ever do and I personally think it should be an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a life for a life. If you’re going to do this kind of thing, you know, you deserve what you get.

4

Well, my mother always said that when she was a little girl, she had her mouth washed out with soap and water and I think that is still the best way. I really do.

5

Urn, I’m not really sure to be honest. Er, I think, ban, a ban I think. Er, six months, a year depending on how much you’ve had I suppose, but I don’t really have a strong opinion about it.

6

I think give the person a bucket and a cloth and make them scrape the stuff off the walls themselves. I think it’s really important. You have to see the consequences of your actions and be made to fix up your own mess. Other than that, maybe give them art classes, so they do it properly.

7

Well, I think this is, you know, a really violent theft. You know, it’s a dreadful crime and I think you should be quite heavily punished for it really. Urn, I think you should get at least fifteen years. I mean, this might act as a deterrent, especially for younger people thinking that it’s just a bit of fun and, um, it’s maybe an easy way of getting money.

8

Well, first of all I think the damage these things do should not be underestimated. This is in no way a nuisance crime. It is extremely, extremely serious. It can have worldwide effects. It can lose businesses and individuals millions of pounds and I think the punishment should reflect this. It’s a difficult one because I think perhaps prison is too harsh but perhaps we should consider community service. I mean, a lot of these people that commit this kind of crime are obviously extremely talented and have a lot of knowledge and maybe that could be put to better use. Or perhaps a large fine. Er, gosh, how much I don’t know, but that would be decided by the courts, but I think that would certainly make these criminals, because that’s what they are, think twice about doing it again.

9

Well, I think it should be imprisonment for quite a long time because this is a crime that can also involve torture and can also involve murder as well, so it is a very serious crime and it can do an enormous amount of damage to the victim if they survive and to the victim’s family, so I think it’s quite a serious offence.

4. Read and answer these questions.

a Which crime is each person talking about?

b Which speaker does not refer to one of the crimes above?

c What punishment do the speakers suggest?

d Which punishments do you agree with? Do you disagree with any of them? Why?

Speaker	Crime	Punishment
1	trespassing

Discussion

1 Work in small groups and discuss these questions.

a Do you think punishment is an effective deterrent to crime? If yes, which kind of punishment do you think is most effective? If not, how would you prevent crime?

b Do you think crime is ever justifiable?

2. Read the cases below and discuss the questions that follow each one.

Case one	Case two	Case three
A driver swerves to avoid a little girl crossing the road. The driver goes off the road and injures a pedestrian.	A footballer trips up an opponent deliberately. The opponent breaks a leg and is unable to play football again. He sues the other footballer for a lifetime of lost earnings.	Bob adds a double vodka rather than a single to Joe’s drink. Joe gets into his car and is stopped by the police on the way home. He’s breathalysed, found to be over the legal alcohol limit and banned from driving for six months. Joe sues Bob for the money he has to spend on taxis over the next six months.

Case 1

a What is the driver guilty of, if anything? b Who should pay for the pedestrian’s medical expenses? c Who should pay for the damage done to the car?

Case 2

Should the footballer pay? Why/Why not?

Case 3

Should Bob pay for Joe’s taxi expenses? Why/Why not?