Расследование преступлений

Criminal investigation is the keystone of the police service and in the structure of the detective function*. Investigation means a search. It means a search for the truth, for the offender, for witnesses who help to reconstruct the happening and will present evidence of it in court. Criminal investigation is indispensable to learn whether an accident involves a crime and if so who is responsible. As for the police work the investigation is an inquiry into the facts surrounding the commission of the criminal offence, i.e. what it is, where it was, who the offender was, when, why and how he was committing the crime.

No successful investigation is available without participating highly professional policemen - patrol officers, detectives or investigators - who possess such attributes of the policeman's profession as dedication, courage, intelligence, competency, self-command, specialized investigative aptitudes and professional instinct, i.e. some sleuthing powers. To ferret out serious crimes and detect those who commit them a police officer should do his best in performing his job. He should be knowledgeable not only in theoretical fundamentals of law enforcement but he should also be skilled in such policeman's functions as marksmanship, driving a patrol car, communicating with the public. All that helps him in maintaining proper police/public relations and in his decision-making judgement.

Thus frustrating the efforts of professional criminals and quick and accurate solution of crime depend very much on proper special training, education and selection of police officers. It also depends on their skills in undercover work - laying an ambush and conducting surveillance, penetrating the underworld, work with the informants, their choosing, cultivating and usage. The informant is a person who gives the police officer confidential information about a crime as his civic responsibility and duty. A police officer operating in plain clothes often comes to know personally the offenders of the specific criminal specialty, their friends, their relatives and close associates and becomes familiar with salient features of their modus operandi.

In case the investigating officer works at the crime scene he defines the crime quickly and examines the scene very carefully before he touches and disturbs anything. He takes active measures to detect the offender that is to identify, locate and apprehend an evil-doer. He usually takes pictures of the scene and its objects and makes a plan on which he records the position of any trace. He collects and protects evidence, interviews witnesses and details a number of other factors e.g. search of the premises and persons for discovery of stolen property and instruments of the crime. Then the investigator examines all the evidence to establish proof of guilt against the person responsible for a crime, and if so brings a charge against the suspect and presents the criminal case for the prosecution in court.

No doubt quick and accurate crime investigation and solution, catching, neutralizing and bringing the criminal to justice is essential. At the same time a very much more important and difficult thing is crime prevention. In order to function effectively in crime prevention the professional policeman establishes contacts with the public and maintains positive attitudes about the citizens he serves. If understanding is lacking, then decision-making judgement and general performance of the policeman in the field will be less effective. The better he understands the people, the better he manages to perform his duty.

Упражнения для чтения

Ex. 12. Просмотрите следующие слова, обращая внимание на суффиксы. Вспомните их значения. Переведите.

NOUNS (что?):

-tion, -sion	coordination	apprehension	commission
function	position	investigation	examination
selection	prevention	relation	profession
information	dedication	solution
globalization	prosecution	education
-ance, -ence	-ment	cогл. + y	-sure, -zure
surveillance	judgement	specialty	measure
performance	instrument	discovery	seizure
intelligence	enforcement	property	-ity
evidence	-ture	competence	responsibility
offence	feature	inquiry	-ship
-ness	structure	duty	marksmanship
witness	picture	country

ADJECTIVES (какой?):

-al	-ive	-ic	-ful
criminal	detective	public	successful
professional	investigative	civic	-ible
theoretical	active	specific	responsible
special	positive	economic	-ous
confidential	effective	-able	serious
essential	-ant, -ent	indispensable
general	important	available
social	salient	knowledgeable

Ex. 13. Переведите на русский язык:

we do our best, she does her best, they function in these systems, it depends on our skills and intelligence, they combine many methods, he combines different principles, everyone possesses common sense, those who possess decision-making judgement, no efforts frustrating the plans, he manages to become familiar, I manage to come to know, we take some measures, the prosecutor brings the criminal to justice, the operative conducts search, discovery and seizure; they search stolen property, he searches instruments of a crime.

Ex. 14. Прочтите и переведите следующие слова, обращая внимание на суффиксы и приставки.

responsible – responsibility

reconstruct – reconstruction – reconstructor – reconstructive

commit – commission – commissioner

offend – offender – offence – offensive

participate – participation – participant – participle

profess – professor – profession – professional – professionally

dedicate – dedicated – dedication – dedicator

special – specialist – speciality – specialize – specialization – specialty

perform– performance – performer – performing

know – knowledge – knowledgeable

theory – theoretical – theoretic – theorist – theorize

enforce – enforcement – enforcer

maintain – maintenance

judge – judgement

frustrate – frustration

solve – solution

person – personal – personally – personality – personnel

prosecute – prosecution – prosecutor

define – definite – definition – indefinite

care – careful – carefully – careless – carelessly

identify – identification – identity – identic(al)

locate – location

apprehend – apprehension

penetrate – penetration – penetrating

Ex. 15. Переведите на русский язык, обращая особое внимание на формы с окончанием -ing.

1. After finding some physical evidence proving the guilt of the accused the case was not difficult to solve. 2. Handling evidence in a proper way is very important for solving the case. 3. The police officer should know of the importance of handling evidence. 4. Handling evidence the officer was very careful in choosing the transport and the guard. 5. The document belonging to the accused was evidence of his innocence. 6. Presenting evidence in court the investigator should show all the facts saying for and against the accused. 7. The facts surrounding the commission of the offence were very interesting. 8. It was quite impossible to solve that crime without participating a highly professional policeman. 9. Policeman's competency in law enforcement helps him in maintaining law and order. 10. A police officer operating in plain clothes often helps quick and accurate crime solution. 11. Laying an ambush is one of the detective functions.

Ex. 16. Выразите своё согласие или несогласие со следующими утвер-ждениями, используя True/False.

Criminal investigation is the keystone of the police and militia service. For the police officer crime detection means performing overt and covert functions. The police officer conducts surveillance – he observes secretly persons, places and objects to obtain the necessary information. Sometimes the undercover agent penetrates the underworld to ferret out criminal plans. He ferrets out criminal plans and frustrates the efforts of professional criminals. Marksmanship and driving a patrol car are indispensable policeman's functions. Decision-making judgement of a police officer as well as his communicative abilities doesn’t mean much for his job. A detective never chooses, cultivates and uses the informants for getting confidential information about а crime. The informant gives the police confidential information for his personal gain. As a plain-clothes man the police officer comes to know the offenders personally. He never lays an ambush. He comes to know the offenders of the specific criminal specialty and their close associates. The police officer becomes familiar with salient features of criminal's modus operandi. He seldom tries to identify, locate and apprehend an evil-doer.	T	F

Ex. 17. Закончите следующие предложения, опираясь на содержание текста "Investigation of Crime".

Investigation of Crime

– is the keystone of…

– means a search for the truth, for the offender...

– is an inquiry into the facts...

– is answering the questions: what, where...

– requires a highly-professional policeman who should

possess...

– includes covert and overt functions...

– is essential, but crime prevention is more…

Ex. 18. Составьте краткую аннотацию текста "Investigation of Crime",

используя план, диаграмму (с. 23), некоторые фразы клише и её примерную структуру (см. таблицу С, с. 132):

Plan

1. Criminal investigation is the keystone of police service.

2. The profession of a policeman.

3. Undercover work of a police officer (covert functions).

4. Crime scene investigation (overt functions).

5. Crime prevention.