abuse /n/, /v/

He's been charged with alcohol abuse. Child abuse is on the increase in this country. The youngsters started hurling abuse at the elderly lady.

appeal against /v/

an appeal to The European Court of Human Rights

arson /n/

The building was destroyed in an arson attack.

assassination /n/

There are a lot of conspiracy theories about the assassination of John Kennedy. .

assault /n/, /v/

In this area there have been several assaults on police officers. If you assault a police officer on duty, the punishment can be really harsh.

blackmail /n/ , /v/

There's no way I can give in to your demands. It's pure blackmail! She tried to blackmail his with some photos of him and his lover.

bribe /n/, /v/

The doctor is said to have accepted a bribe before a difficult procedure.. He tried to bribe a public official to sell his the licence.

burglary /n/

There are a lot of burglaries in this part of the town.

capital punishment /n/

Capital punishment is morally wrong - killing is unacceptable in all circumstances.

community service /n/

a community service order

corporal punishment /n/

Many people believe that corporal punishment is intrinsically evil.

court (of law) /n/

You would have to prove all this in a court of law.

court ruling /n/

The company decided to appeal against the court ruling.

criminal /n/

The police describe him as a hardened criminal.

death penalty /n/

Death penalty is morally wrong - killing is unacceptable in all circumstances.

defendant /n/

The defendant has been found not guilty.

drug dealing /n/

The police have been trying to crack down on drug dealing in our city.

drunk-driving /n/

He was charged with drunk-driving and, eventually, he lost his driving licence.

evidence /n/

There is no evidence for these claims.

fine /n/

I owe the city 200$ in parking fines.

fraud /n/

He was found guilty of credit card fraud. They were all exposed as a bunch of tricksters and frauds.

guilty of /adj/

He was guilty of selling the information to the papers.

hijacking /n/

The airport authorities have introduced some measures to prevent hijacking.

hold-up /n/

There was a bank hold-up yesterday.

imprisonment /n/

He was sentenced to two months' imprisonment.

innocent /adj/

The court found him innocent and he was released.

judge /n/

a High Court Judge

jury /n/

a trial by jury

kidnapping /n/

the recent kidnapping of a little girl

lawsuit /n/

He filed a lawsuit against the state.

lawyer /n/

She has consulted a lawyer and she may sue him.

life imprisonment /n/

The only sentence for murder in the UK is life imprisonment.

manslaughter /n/

The defendant was found guilty of manslaughter but not of murder.

mugging /n/

She was the victim of a brutal mugging.

murder /n/ ,/v/

a brutal murder of a little girl. He was accused of murdering his wife.

offence /n/

the new offence of phishing

parking ticket /n/

When I found another parking ticket tucked under the windscreen wiper, I was furious.

pickpocketing /n/

Pick-pocketing is on the increase

plainfiff /n/

In a criminal case, the plaintiff is the state.

prison /n/

a prison sentence

rape /n/

Rape victims are usually don't want to talk about what happened to them.

robbery /n/

He was found guilty of armed robbery and sentenced to ten years' imprisonment.

sentence /n/

a three-year sentence for fraud

shoplifting /n/

She had been accused of shoplifting in a supermarket.

smuggling /n/

drug smuggling

testify /v/

He testified against his own mother.

theft /n/

Credit card theft is on the increase.

to adjourn a case/trail /v/

The court adjourned the trial until February 2nd.

to be acquitted

The defendant was acquitted.

to commit a crime

People who commit crime end up in jail.

to convict sb of sth /v/

She was convicted of vandalism.

to find sb guilty of a crime

She was found guilty of murder.

to plead guilty

He pleaded guilty to two charges of assault.

to steal /v/

They stole money from their parents.

to sue sb /v/

I sued for breach of contract.

trial /n/

The editor had to stand trial for libel.

vandalism /n/

The building is under surveillance to reduce vandalism and theft.

verdict /n/

The verdict was "not guilty".

wheel clamp /n/

Police officers and traffic wardens have the authority to put wheel clamps on vehicles that are parked illegally.

witness /n/

She was an eye witness to the murder

young offenders' institution

In many ways young offender institutions are different to other prisons.