My son has spent the past two months completing a course called "Mock Trial." In this course, the 7th and 8th graders learn what it is like to be a lawyer. I learned a few things in the process as well!
The case involves three private high schoolers - Anne, Beck, and Cody. Beck and Cody are feeling pressured to pass a certain honors class so they steal a blank copy of the test. Anne catches them and school policy is that she must turn them in or face strict punishments. Beck tries to talk her out of it. Over the weekend, Beck and Cody go to a local beach to try to talk to Anne - Anne is murdered and Beck is arrested.
Okay, here is the kicker - this entire case is based on circumstantial evidence. My son was on the prosecution. Their biggest evidence is the bloody rock and then a statement Beck makes to police about Anne's head being bashed in - that statement is thrown out because Beck's parents were not there when Beck was questioned. So this leaves the poor kids trying to win with no hope.
They did a fantastic job! I congratulate all of them - it had to have been hard to put on this performance to a room full of adults, but in front of real lawyers and a real judge - that makes it a lot more nerve racking! They did great.
Meanwhile, I learned something important.
Jury chairs are horrendously uncomfortable. This case lasted 3 1/2 hours - all on a school night no less - we were there from 6:30 to 10pm and by the time I left my tail bone was killing me. I can't imagine HOW any juror makes it through a case when it is extremely apparent that the chairs are not designed for comfort.
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1 comment:
If the juror chairs were comfortable, members of the jury would fall asleep.
I had to answer a jury summons once. It was an older man who had struck a car with a younger woman driving it during a rainy day. He was returning home after visiting his wife in the hospital. The attorney was a relative of the woman and worked in the DA's office...this was grossly unfair. The attorney droned on and on until the judge fell asleep and I was fighting to stay awake. Of course the woman won the case. Later I saw an announcement in the paper that she went into a highpowered job at a nursing home. On the jury stand she & her attorney claimed she was practically bed-ridden...
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