The district People's Court hears the majority of the cases. More important cases such as the crimes against the state are determined by the regional court or a court of equal standing.

The Supreme Court of Russia is the highest judicial organ of the Russia State. It is charged to supervise the work of all judicial organs.

The Procurator's Office is established to exercise supervisory power over the strict observance and application of the law by all organizations, officials as well as by all citizens of the country.

Other duties of the Procurator's Office are to investigate criminal cases, collect evidence against the criminals and see to it that other investigating bodies act according to the law.

So it may be said that the Procurator's Office, like all the Russian courts, protects legality, law and order.

Text F. Stages of Criminal Activity

As a rule, premeditated criminal activity consists of several stages: preparation, attempt and commission.

Preparation of a crime is the search for an adaptation of means or instruments, or any other premeditated creation of combinations for the commission of a crime. Preparation of a crime is generally a punishable offence. But in determining the penalty, the court must take into consideration the extent of. the danger to society involved in the preparations, the degree to which the criminal intent has been put into effect, and the causes that prevented the full commission of the crime. In cases where the person plotting a crime has not gone beyond the preparation the court usually imposes a milder penalty or none at all. An attempt is a premeditated act directly aimed at the commission of a crime but not completed for reasons not depending on the will of the guilty person.

An attempt is a punishable offense. But in determining the penalty the court must also take into consideration the character, the degree of the danger to society involved in the act committed by the guilty person, the degree to which the criminal intent has been put into effect, and the causes that prevent the full commission of the crime.

A crime is considered as committed when the guilty person has performed the act containing the corpus delicti of crime.

Desisting from completion of a crime is possible in the stages of preparation and attempt when a person having the possibility, of completing the crime, of his own free will abandons his criminal intent before its completion. He is then responsible only in the act performed by him contains the corpus delicti of another crime.

2.1.4.5 Задание 3. Ответьте на вопросы по текстам А, В, С, D, E, F

1 What does the Procurator’s office ensure?

2 What right has the procurator?

3 What kind of cases does a court of first instance examine?

4 Who are the participants in the trial?

5 What is the highest judicial organ in our country?

6 What is the main aim of Law?

7 What branches of Law in the Law System of our country do you know?

8 What does the Financial Law regulate?

9 How do the graduates administer justice?

10 What acts does Criminal Law define?

11 What leading principles of Russian Criminal Law do you know?

12 What is the Russian Court?

13 What is the basic Russian judicial organ?

14 What is the highest judicial organ?

15 What is the Procurator’s Office established for?

16 What stages does the criminal activity consist of?

17 What does an attempt mean?

18 What must the court take in to consideration?

19 When is a crime considered as committed?