The terminology of law

some words used in the topic of crimes and punishment.

• Homicide/ murder: the crime of killing someone.
• suicide: the action of deliberately killing yourself.
• suicide pact: an agreement that two or more people make to kill themselves at the same time.
• Assassination: the murder of a famous or important person, especially for political reasons.
• Terrorism: the use of violence to achieve political aims.
• Arson: the illegal use of fire to destroy a house, a building or property.
• Blackmail: the crime of making someone give you money or do what you want by threatening to tell people embarrasing information about them.
• Drug dealing: the fact of selling drugs.
• Kidnapping/ abduction: to illegally take someone away and make them a prisoner so as to make their family or government give you money or allow you to do what you want.
• Fraud:  1- the crime of obtaining money from someone by tricking them

                   2- the action of producing false documents or information in order to get what you want.

• Embezzlement: the act of stealing money that people trust you to look after as part of your work( in a bank for instance).
• Bribery: the crime of giving money or presents to someone so that they will help you by doing something dishonest or illegal.
• Hijacking: an occasion when someone illegally takes control of a vehicle, especially a plane, using violence or threats.
• treason; the crime of helping your country s enemeies or trying to destroy your country 's government.
• Rape: the crime of forcing someone to have sex by using violence.
• Mugging: an attack on someone in a public place in order to steal their money, jewellery or other possessions.
• speeding: the offence of driving faster tahn the speed that is allowed in an area.
• Libel:the illegal act of writing things about someone that are not true.
• Plagiarism: the process of taking another person's work, ideas, or words and using them as if they were your own.

The different kinds of punishment:

• Death penalty: legal punishment by death usually for a serious crime.It is also called the capital punishment.
• Life sentence: a punishment in which a person is going to stay all the rest of his/her life in prison.
• Prison sentence: to spend a period in prison/jail.
• Custody: a situation in which someone is kept in priosn until they go to court for trial.
• Bail: money that is given to court when someone is allowed to stay out of prison.
• Fine: an amount of money that you have to pay because you have broken the law.
• caution:an official warning from the police to someone who has broken the law, stating that they will be punished if they do it again.
• Damages:money that a court orders you to pay someone because you have harmed them or their property.