CRIME VOCABULARY

Felony: a serious crime that can be punished by more than one year in prison

Sentence: He was arrested on suspicion of planning to commit a felony.

Hacking: an attempt to exploit a computer system or a private network inside a computer.

Sentence: The FBI is probing the biggest ever hacking attack on the internet.

Bribery: the crime of giving someone, especially someone in a position of authority, money, a gift, etc.

Sentence: Six officials are already suspended on bribery claims.

Racketeering: dishonest and fraudulent business dealings.

Sentence: Health insurers stand accused of being racketeers who conspire to cheat doctors.

Extortion: the practice of obtaining something, especially money, through force or threats.

Sentence: The court sentenced him to prison for attempting extortion of his former business partner.

Embezzlement: the act of stealing money that you are responsible for or that belongs to your employer.

Sentence: She was found guilty of embezzlement.

Vandalism: action involving deliberate destruction of or damage to public or private property.

Sentence: The couple was charged with vandalism after carving their initials into a famous sculpture.

Arson: the crime of setting fire to a building on purpose

Sentence: The fire was caused by arson, but so far the culprit has not been caught

Manslaughter: the crime of killing somebody without intending to do so

Sentence: She was convicted of manslaughter for driving while drunk and killing three people.

Homicide: the illegal killing of one person by another; murder

Sentence: The number of homicides in the city has risen sharply.

Assault: a sudden attack on somebody/something

Sentence: She verbally assaulted one of her coworkers.

Misdemeanor: something slightly bad or wrong that a person does; a crime that is not very serious

Sentence: he was charged with a misdemeanor, that of carrying a concealed weapon.