Learning English - Words in the News

Bear convicted of stealing honey

A court in Macedonia has convicted a bear of theft and criminal damage for stealing honey from a beekeeper. However, there was an empty dock, and no handcuffed bear. This report from Paddy Clark:
Listen to the story
The case was brought by an exasperated beekeeper after a year of vainly trying to protect his beehives from the marauding bear.
For a while, he kept the animal away by buying a generator, lighting up the area, and playing thumping Serbian turbo-folk music. But when the generator ran out of power and the music fell silent, the bear was back and the honey was gone again.
The beekeeper decided to go to law, and the bear was tried in absentia. The court agreed he had a case and found the bear guilty. But because the animal had no owner and belonged to a protected species, it ordered the state to pay for the damage.
The bear, meanwhile, remains at large -- somewhere in Macedonia.
Paddy Clark, BBC
Listen to the words
exasperated very annoyed/angry
vainly unsuccessfully
thumping Serbian turbo-folk musicvery loud music with a strong beat and of a particular style (we’re not entirely sure what Serbian turbo-folk music sounds like, perhaps you could email us and let us know)
ran out of powerdid not have any fuel left to keep it working
the music fell silentthe music stopped
to go to lawto ask a court to make a decision about something
the bear was tried in absentiathe bear’s guilt or innocence was decided without the bear being in court
a casean issue that needs to be decided in a court of law
found the bear guiltydecided the bear was responsible for the damage (at the end of the official legal enquiry)
remains at largeis still free and living somewhere in the country