Vocabulary notes

to drop the case	закрыть дело
weaknesses in the evidence	слабости доказательной базы
to penalize	наказывать, штрафовать
defense counsel	защитник (в суде)
to frustrate efforts	сорвать попытки
hostile	враждебный
to summon	вызывать в суд повесткой
bar association	коллегия адвокатов
summary	быстротечный, без разбирательств
firing	увольнение

Task 3. Read the text again and make sure you know all underlined parts of the text. Give their Russian equivalents

Task 4. Read the text again and answer the following questions:

1. What is the message of this text?

2. Why are some cases dropped?

3. Why do many people say they will be less cooperative in the future?

4. Why are there so many delays?

5. Why do most defense lawyers consider delay their most important weapon?

6. How much do states pay as witness fees?

Task 5. Agree or disagree with the following statements:

1. Cases are never dropped because of various weaknesses in the evidence.

2. Witnesses are abused, discouraged and penalized.

3. Witnesses have to come back only once.

4. The objective of every defense attorney is to wear out the state's witnesses.

5. Most defense lawyers consider delay their least important weapon.

6. The job of a criminal lawyer is to see that the client always gets to trial.

7. States pay from nothing to $6 a day as witness fees.

8. A citizen has no legal protection against summary firing.

Task 6. Ask the questions to which the following statements are the answers:

1. Not long ago, the leaa (Law Enforcement Assistance Administration) checked some 3000 District of Columbia cases.

2. A 1970 study of criminal justice hammered at the main cause.

3. The objective is to wear out the state's witnesses.

4. Cooperative victims and witnesses become hostile.

5. Your job as a criminal lawyer is to see that your client never gets to trial.

6. Because his employer refused to pay for time lost during many court appearances.

7. The Constitution says that private property may not be taken for public use without just compensation.

8. Several men told of losing jobs because of repeated calls to court.

9. We pay him some miserable sum like $5 a day.

10. A citizen has no legal protection against such summary firing.

Task 7. Explain in English what the words and word combinations mean. Use them in your own sentences

Discourage, fail to cooperate, cooperative, criminal justice, to wear out the state's witnesses, defense attorney, to get convicted, court appearance, delay, testimony

Task 8. Practice the speech patterns given below. Make up two sentences of your own on each pattern

1. Close to half had to be dropped because witnesses had failed to cooperate. Some witnesses fail to appear in court when summoned. Fear of reprisal is a significant factor in causing witnesses to fail to cooperate.

2. Not long ago, the leaa checked some 3000 District of Columbia cases dropped because of various weaknesses in the evidence. Cooperative victims and witnesses become unwilling to provide the testimony needed for conviction. One witness, the father of six children, lost $574 in wages because his employer refused to pay for time lost during many court appearances.

3. Just how witnesses are abused, discouraged and penalized was spelled out for me in interviews around the country. How the authorities nabbed a "welfare queen" who used 250 ali­ases in 16 states to milk huge amounts of money is amazing.

4. We make a man who earns $30-$40 a day come to court again and again as a witness. The defense lawyer made him provide the testimony needed for conviction. This makes prison look a bargain.

5. While most defense lawyers consider delay their most important weapon few are as frank as William Coffey, a prominent Milwaukee defense attorney. 40 percent of witnesses said they would be as cooperative in the future as they are now.

6. Cooperative victims and witnesses become hostile, refuse to appear and, if summoned, become unwilling to provide the testimony needed for conviction.

The official, if asked to hand over a certified copy of the certificate, generally has no idea whether that person is living or dead, nor any quick means of finding out. Defendants so convicted may receive treatment, but serve out their sentences even if pro­nounced cured.

Task 9. Make the summary of the text. Use the key words and word combinations

Text 3

Task 1. Answer the questions:

1. Why do you think it is sometimes dangerous to be a witness?

2. What and who can threaten a witness. ?

3. Do you know where your local police station is?

Task 2. Read the text to get the main idea paying special attention to the underlined parts of the text (key words and word combinations)

4. Threats: Fear of reprisal is a significant factor in causing witnesses to fail to cooperate. Says Donald Santarelli: I think this factor alone might be responsible for half the cases that have to be scrubbed. Not only are we unable to protect huge numbers of citizens against crime in the first place, but we can’t instill confidence in them that the law can protect them if they testify against the accused.” In some jurisdictions, it is still only a misdemeanor to threaten a witness.

Unfortunately, harassment of witnesses can come not only from the accused but also from the prosecutor. In some jurisdictions, Jim Lacy, assistant director of the Police Foundation, reports, the holding of stolen property by the police is employed as a lever to ensure that the complainant will attend all court proceedings to which he is summoned.”

Some court officials argue that if the property were returned promptly to the complainant after the arrest, neither the complainant nor the property would be seen again. Lacy tells of a case in Manhattan a few years ago. A man whose TV set had been stolen sought to withdraw his criminal complain after he had made four court appearances as a witness — and still couldn’t get his TV returned. He said the defendant had stolen the set for only two day but the court had taken it from him for five months.

5. Lack of Information: One of the most widespread reasons for the trepidation and diffidence of witnesses is that the average citizen doesn’t know where he’s supposed to report or what he has to do. Says Santarelli: It’s a mess. The policeman is likely to tell the witness no more than: You be down at the station house at nine o’clock tomorrow night for the lineup.’ Where’s the station house? Where’s the lineup? How do I get there?”

What can we do to end the abuse of witnesses, to stop them from becoming victims of our criminal justice system?