Unit 1: Law and order

Activity 1: read about different types of crimes:

1. Murder → deliberately killing someone.
2. Kidnapping → taking somebody and demanding money to free that person.
3. Burglary → entering a building (often while no one is in it) and stealing money or objects.
4. Mugging → taking something by force from someone, often in the street.
5. Pickpocketing →stealing from someone’s pocket, handbag, etc, without them realizing.
6. Arson → setting fire to a building illegally.
7. Shoplifting → stealing things while pretending to shop.
8. Hijacking → using force to take control of a plane, ship, train, etc.
9. Fraud → cheating someone to get their money.
10. Theft → stealing-usually secretly and without violence.
12. Smuggling →bringing illegal items or animals into a country or bring goods without paying taxes.

Now, read these situations and identify the crimes:

a. James pretended to start a business and persuaded some into people to lend him some money. He used the
money to go on a holiday to the Caribbean. __________________
b. Peter Short stole a computer from the company he worked for. ___________________
c. Vincent Tapper took a pistol and ordered the pilot to fly to Miami. ______________________
d. John Smethurst set fire to his school after failing all his exams. _____________________
e. Paul Winters and Jennifer Summers stopped millionaire William Gates outside his home and forced him to go
with them. They demanded 30 million dollars from the family to free him. _____________________
f. Nigel Handy waited until night, carefully forced open the window and climbed into the house. He took the TV
and a lot of money. ______________________
g. Pete Murphy often went to the shopping centre and took wallets from the people shopping. They never felt a
thing! ____________________
h. Anne Clinton walked around the department store and, making sure no one was watching, put two expensive
watches into her bag. ______________________

Activity 2: look at these pictures. What can you see in each one?

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Activity 3: Read the headlines and identify all the words
connected to crime. What do you think happened in each of the situations?

Activity 4: read the newspaper stories below and

match the headlines from activity 3 to the correct story.

Activity 5: answer these questions:

a) How long have the police been
investigating the murder?
b) Who do the police want to talk about the
man who tried to strangle a woman?
c) What kind of weapon are the police using
to stop the burglars?
d) Why is a teenager going to prison?
e) How many are usually arrested in one
year?

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Focus on language use
a. In news reports, the passive voice is often used. Look at these sentences from the news
stories.

a). ... the body was found two days ago by a man walking his dogs.
b) A fifty-five-year-old man has been charged after trying to strangle a woman...
c) The woman was returning from holiday when she was stopped by customs officers ...

Analyse the three examples and answer:

1. What is more important, the “doer” of the action or the “result” of the action?
2. In which sentences is the “doer” mentioned?
3. Why does the second sentence not mention the “doer” of the action?
4. Underline the verbs in sentences A and B. How are they formed?

b. Rewrite these three sentences in the passive.

Police are examining the crime scene. The crime scene ………………………………………………………………
The officials seized drugs worth nearly £100,000. Drugs………………………………………………………………
Police in one UK town have arrested 250 people for shoplifting. ………………………………………………

Activity 6: Complete the news using the Passive Voice of these verbs:
arrest - handcuff - injure - steal - rescue - sentence
POLICE THEFT
A Television set 1________ from a Liverpool police station while officers were out fighting a crime.

PLANE DRAMA
A drunk passenger tried to open an airplane door at 30,000 feet. He 2_____________ for the rest of a Denmark to
Thailand flight.

CAMPER DIES
Camper John Barnes, 23, 3__________ after a 200-meter fall into a rocky ravine with only a broken foot. Sadly, he
died when he fell out of the ambulance on the way to the hospital in Perth, Australia.

UNLUCKY BURGLAR
Burglar Frank Gort broke down and sobbed when he 4_______________ to seven years in jail, claiming it was his
unlucky number. An understanding judge in San Antonio, Texas, took pity and gave him eight years instead.

WANTED MAN JAILED

Fugitive James Sanders, who escaped from jail in 1975, 5____________ in Texas after ringing the FBI to check if he
was still on the wanted list.

STABBED IN THE BACK

Mr. Clarence Ramsey 6___________ seriously ______________ yesterday when a man came up behind him and stabbed
him in the back. Turning around to face his attacker, Mr. Ramsey was surprised to hear him say, “Sorry I
thought you were somebody else.”

Activity 7: Read the news stories and:

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A) Invent a short title for each one.
B) Complete using and fill in the spaces these verbs: destroyed – smashed – regretted – crossing

_______________________________________________ _______________________________________________
Police are appealing for witnesses to a robbery A fire at Fenbury Warehouse is being treated as
which took place Monday afternoon in Fenbury. arson, according to a police spokesperson.
Two masked men broke into Statham Jewellers. The fire broke out at around 5 am and quickly
One robber brandished a sawn-off shotgun, while engulfed the whole building. By the time the fire
an accomplice 1……………. display cases, stealing brigade arrived at the scene, almost the entire
rings and necklaces. warehouse had been 2……………. .
Police believe that the robbers escaped in a The warehouse contained electronic parts, and
getaway car that was driven by a third gang insurers have estimated the damage to be in the
member. region of three million pounds.

_______________________________________________
_______________________________________________
A local woman was involved in a hit-and-run
A local man has been given a three-month jail incident early Sunday afternoon.
sentence for repeatedly shoplifting in the Newbury Monica Parsons, 27, was 3……………. Finchley
area. Road near her house, when she was hit by a car
Gary Dibbot, 28, who paid a fine six months ago being driven at speed.
for a previous conviction, admitted stealing Hospital sources say that the victim has no
DVDs from RentaVideo in Fenbury. recollection of the incident. Police have appealed
Dibbot's lawyer said that his client 4……………. for information from anyone who saw a white car
his actions and that he would turn over a new being driven at speed in the area.
leaf after serving his sentence.

C) Vocabulary in context. Find the underlined words and expressions in the articles and choose the best
explanation for each:

1. When the police appeal for witnesses: 3. A previous conviction is:

a) they want to speak to witnesses a) something you used to believe
b) they are interviewing witnesses b) a past crime you were guilty of
c) they are pleased with the witnesses c) something you did that you regret

2. In the region of three million pounds is: 4. If you brandish a shotgun:

a) under three million pounds a) you fire the gun repeatedly
c) at least three million pounds b) you point it at someone
c) about three million pounds c) you keep a shotgun hidden under your clothes

D) Are these sentences true or false? Correct the false ones.

1. The two robbers threatened staff and customers with knives. ____

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 2. The robbers got away on foot. ____
3. Police think the warehouse fire was an accident. ____
4. The fire spread through the building quickly. ____
5. The car that hit Monica Parsons was going very fast. ____
6. She can remember the incident clearly. ____
7. A man has gone to prison for three months for stealing. ____
8. He says he will steal again in the future. ____

E) Find 6 examples of Passive voice in the news articles and identify the tense.

Activity 8: Active or Passive? Choose the correct verb forms in this news report about a storm.
Millions of pounds’ worth damage caused / was caused by the storm which (1)swept/ was swept across the
north of England last night. The River Ribble (2)burst/was burst it banks after heavy rain. Many people (3)
rescued/ were rescued from the floods by fire fighters, who (4) received/were received hundreds of calls for help.
Roads (5) blocked/ were blocked by fallen trees.

Activity 9: You are telling a friend some news. Use the notes to complete the second sentence. Remember to
use past passive voice!
Example: (the airline sent our luggage to Australia)
Bad news about our luggage. It was sent to Australia.

A- (A bull attacked David)

Did you hear about David? He was ………………………………………………………………

B- (The architect finished the house)

Trevor and Laura have bought a house. It ……………………………………………………………… last week.

C- (Five people saw the ghost)

Did I tell you about the ghost? It…………………………………………………………………………………………

Activity 10: Complete this conversation. Use the verbs in brackets.

was broken into

Laura: Our house…………………………………………………(break into) at the weekend.
Melanie: Oh no!
Laura: Some jewellery (1)……………………………………(steal). But luckily no damage (2)…………………………… (do)
Melanie: Did the police come and see you?
Laura: Yes, they did. I (3)…………………………………(interview) by a young police officer.
Melanie: I don’t suppose they know who did it.
Laura: Well, amazingly, they do. Some fingerprints (4)…………………………… (find) and the burglar
(5)……………………… (identify). A man (6) ……………………………… (arrest) and (7)…………………………… (question).
Melanie: Wonderful.
Laura: There’s only one problem. The jewellery (8) ………………………………………………… (not/ find).

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Activity 11: Read this newspaper reports and complete them using the passive voice

1 Castel fire 2 SHOP ROBBERY

In Paham yesterday a shop assistant (1)_________ ___________

was damaged
Winton castle (1) ______________(damage) in a fire (force) to hand over U$S 500 after he
last night. The fire, which (2)____________________ (2)____________________(threaten) by a man with a knife. The
thief escaped in a stolen car. The car (4)
(discover) at about 9 o’clock, spread very quickly. Nobody
________________________ (later/ find) in a car park. A man (5)
(3)______________________ (injure). A number of
_____________________ (arrest) in connection with the
paintings (4) ______________________ (destroy). robbery.

Activity 12: Complete the sentences using one of these verbs in present or past passive voice.

cause write damage translate hold show

are held
a) In Argentina, elections for President ……………………………………………… every four years.
b) The roof of the building………………………………………… in a storm a few days ago.
c) A cinema is a place where films ………………………………………….
d) Many accidents………………………………………… by dangerous driving.
e) Originally, the book ………………………… in Spanish and a few years ago it …………………………… into English.

Activity 13: Rewrite these sentences. Instead of using “somebody/they/people” write a pasive sentence.
The room is cleaned everyday

A. Somebody cleans the room everyday. ……………………………………………………………………………………….

B. They cancelled all flights because of fog. All ……………………………………………………………………………….
C. Somebody accused me of stealing money. I …………………………………………………………………………………
D. People don’t use this road any longer. This …………………………………………………………………………………

Activity 14:
a)Complete this news story using the past Passive Voice.
Hurricane Sandy
Hundreds of people, living on America’s east coast, ……………………… (make) homeless and at least 62 people
…………………… (kill) by Hurricane Sandy.
Thousands of homes ……………………… (destroy) and left without electricity. Subways and tunnels in New York City
……………………… (flood). Schools ……………………… (close). Emergency shelters ……………………… (build)
and hot meals ……………………… (give) to the people by the American Red Cross.

b) Read the article again and find words with these meanings:
• people who do not have a home to live in: __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
• a source of power: __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
• public transportation which is under the ground: __ __ __ __ __ __ __
• an extremely strong wind plus bad weather: __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
• an organization that helps people: __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __

Activity 15: Complete the story using Passive or Active voice in the correct tense (past/ present perfect/
conditional)
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Bank robbery
Armed robbers (1) ___________________(escape) with an unknown quantity of cash from a bank in Hong Kong.
It (2) _________________ (think) that at least ten million Hong Kong dollars in cash (3) _________________(take) but the
bank (4) ________________________ (not / yet / reveal) the exact amount.
A large area of Central District (5) ______________________ (seal) off causing traffic jams. However, all of the thieves
(6) _________________ (manage) to escape.
One customer told reporters, ‘We (7) _________________ (tell) to lie on the floor and that if anyone moved they (8)
_______________ (shoot).’
Police (9) _________________ (arrive) within minutes after shots (10) _________________ (hear) coming from inside the
bank and a member of the public (11) _________________ (dial) 999.
Detective Andy Chan later made a statement saying that no arrests (12) _________________ (make) so far but he
was confident the men (13) _____________________ (find) soon.

Activity 16: Read and complete the breaking news.

International News! Gossip Column

More than 2.500 people ____________ (kill) during the New scandalous photos of Gabriella Hunt ____________
earthquake in Iran. The earthquake measured 6.7 on the (upload) online recently!
Richter’s scale.

Sports News TV Guide

The world 100 meters record____________ (break) for A new episode of Sponge Bob ____________ (shoot) our
the second time this week. town this month!

Science Readers’ Letters

A new planet ____________ (find) in the constellation I wonder if anybody can answer my question. How much
Aquarius. The planet ____________ (discover) by lipstick ____________ (eat) on
astronomers in California last week. average by a woman every year?

Activity 17: Invent 3 breaking news.