Jury Service - An Important Job and a Rewarding Experience

The right to trial by a jury of our fellow citizens is one of our most important rights and is guaranteed by the Constitution of the United States. By serving on a Jury, then, you are helping to guarantee one of our most important freedoms.

Your job as a juror is to listen to all the evidence presented at trial and to "decide the facts" - that is, to decide what really happened. The judge, on the other hand, "decides the law" - that is, makes decisions on legal issues that come up during the trial. For example, the judge may have to decide whether you and the other jurors may hear certain evidence or whether one lawyer may ask a witness a certain question. You should not try to decide these legal issues, sometimes you will even be asked to leave the courtroom while they are being decided. Both your job and that of the judge must be done well if our system of trial by jury is to work. In order to do your job you do not need any special knowledge or ability. It is enough that you keep an open mind, concentrate on the evidence being presented, use your common sense, and be fair and honest.

Finally, you should not be influenced by sympathy or prejudice: it is vital that you be impartial with regard to all people and all ideas.

Many jurors find that it is exciting to learn about this most important system "from the inside", and challenging to deal fairly and thoroughly with the cases they hear. We hope that you, too, find your experience as a juror to be interesting and satisfying.

II. Подготовьте устный пересказ текста

III. Задайте 5 вопросов разного типа к тексту (письменно)

IV. Вставьте правильное слово и перепишите предложения:

a) If you want legal advice in Britain, you go to a__________________.

b) At the end of the_____, the judge ordered the twelve men and women of the_________________to retire and consider their_____, guilty or not guilty.

c) Men or women who look after prisoners in prison are called prison officers or _________________________.

f) In some countries murderers are executed but other countries have abolished the ______________________.

V. Составьте предложения c предложенными словами:

Words: Property, privacy, house breaking, robbery, at gunpoint, vagrancy.

VI. Вставьте местоимения и артикли, где необходимо:

1. A man-driver while speeding ______ car hit a woman-cyclist off _______bike. ______ was badly injured and confined to a wheelchair for the rest of _____life. The driver didn't stop so ___ was charged with hit and run.

2. I'm afraid _____ Clause 3 of_________ Contract is not quite clear to me.

3. ______ hijacker was arrested soon after___________ attack started.

4. One of____problems they discussed concerned ____arrest of_____soldier.

VII. Письменно переведите предложения с английского на русский:

1. Lemaitre had been suspected of doing away with his women victims…He had defended himself from the charge with consummate skill, aided by some of the best legal talent in the United States.

2. In its absence, he was found not guilty on the capital charge, thought sentenced to a long term of imprisonment on the other charges preferred against him.

VIII. Письменно переведите предложения c русского на английский:

1. Штат требует задержать обвиняемую за попытку убийства и вооруженное ограбление.

2. Суд назначил залог по этому делу в размере 30 000.

3. Судья отправил обвиняемую в тюрьму вместо залога в 5 000 долларов.

4. Жестокость не может быть оправдана потребностью в защите своей собственности.

IX. Подготовьте письменное сообщение на одну из предложенных тем.

1. The Legal System of UK

2. The Judiciary of the USA.

3. Court Proceedings in the United Kingdom and the USA.

4. Criminal law in the UK and the USA.

5. The Legal Profession in the UK and the USA.

6. Judges in the UK and the USA.

7. Young Offenders in the UK and the USA.

X. Будьте готовы к устному ответу по темам:

1. Спорт.

2. Россия.

3. Москва.

4. Путешествия.

5. За покупками.

6. Великобритания.

7. Лондон.

8. Знаменитый представитель страны изучаемого языка.

9. США.

10. Туризм в Великобритании.