Thread: Mexico

Hola, podrían ayudarme con un par de dudas?

Cómo traducirían al inglés "fiscal de homicidios" y "procuraduría capitalina"? Procuraduría capitalina es lo mismo que Procuraduría General de Justicial del DF?

Muchísimas gracias,

M.

Mira, no estoy muy segura. Pero creo que es asi:
"fiscal de homicidios" = public prosecutor of homicides or homicide district attorney
"procuraduria capitalina" = attorney's office who is inhabitant of the capital (this is the exact translation. Procuraduría means attorney's office and capitalina, inhabitant of the capital)
Check, 'cause it could also be "general district's attorney office"

I spent 30 years in the California criminal justice system, and I've never heard of a "public prosecutor of homicides or homicide district attorney", nor have I heard the expression "attorney's office who is inhabitant of the capital". Possibly what we are doing is translating a phrase or title for which there is NO equivalent in the second language.

Although in the movies all prosecutors seem to be called "district attorneys", in reality there is only one district attorney and the prosecutors who work under his supervision are "deputy district attorneys". The term may be shortened to merely "district attorney", but the shortened term is an error. It is common for the office of the district attorney to have units or teams that specialize in certain crimes: homicides, gang-related crimes, etc. The same is true of police forces.

Possibly what we need is more than a translation. Possibly we need to explain how a criminal justice system differs from that known to the reader of the second language. This extends to jails and prisons (they are NOT the same), police department and sheriff department, deputy probation officer and parole agent, etc.

Just a thought.

I agree with Thomas!!

I am an attornet-at-law in Argentina and the legal systems are very different.

Sometimes we have to give the idea, and do not translate the expression word by word, because the reader would see something he/she does not have in his/her own court system.

The last time an attorney agreed with something I had said on was October 27, 1975. I said, "It's raining" and he replied, "It certainly is." Now I'll have to remember today's date too.

Mai,

In La Ciudad de Mexico, Districto Federal, the birthplace of my beautiful wife, "el fiscal de homicidios" or more correctly "el fiscal central de investigación de homicidios de la dependencia" currently Gustavo Salas Cháves, is the head of the office that investigates homicides perhaps best translated as the distric attorney for homicide investigations.

La procuraduría capitalina is the office of the judge advocate general. Currently Renato Sales Gasque is the Federal District Judge Advocate General. Procuraduría General de Justicial del DF and Procuraduría Capitalina refer to the same office.

As you may be able to tell I visit D. F. regularly and take a grat interest in their justice system.

Joel El Detective