Scripted mock trials high school

Miles v. Chris M. Washington A high school student is banned from wearing an anti-abortion button to school. The student seeks an injunction ordering the school district to permit the student to wear the button.

Pat Green A high school student is charged, in the alternative, with assault with intent to murder, assault with intent to do serious bodily harm less than murder, assault with a gun or other dangerous weapons. Shelby London A high school teacher who has been fired alleges wrongful termination of employment because of sexual orientation.

Morgan Thompson The defendant was booked for DUIL Homicide and Negligent Homicide for hitting a bicycle rider with an automobile, driving under the influence of marijuana. Defendant claims that the bike rider hit his fender. He also claims that his friend, who smokes marijuana, borrowed his car earlier. Tanya Brewster This case deals with the negligent storage of a handgun and supervision of a minor.

Scott and Claudia Walker have two children, a daughter and a five-year old boy, Jesse; Scott has a son, T. Brewster, from a previous marriage.

The children were left alone win the house and a bullet from the gun permanently paralyzed Jesse. Scott Walker claims that T. That respondent, 16 year-old Alice, is repeatedly disobedient to the reasonable and lawful commands of her parent; and, 2. That confinement in a secure institution is necessary for the well being of respondent and her unborn child. If the jury finds that the Petitioner proves this, the court will determine th place of confinement.

It will be an institution from which she would not be free to leave unaccompanied and where she would not have access to alcohol. She will be able to complete her final semester of high school while so confined. Pat Green The case is a criminal jury trial involving an 18 year old defendant who pleads self-defense after shooting the leg of another 18 year old armed with a baseball bat.

Killian v. Fun for a year-old comes in many forms movies, the beach, bowling, or just hanging out with friends in front of the local Seven-Eleven. Jamie did not choose to do any of these. Jamie chose to play paintball. Now Jamie has a closed head injury. Did paintball proprietor Chris Schultz engage in negligent conduct that made the game unreasonably dangerous?

Did Jamie ignore posted safety instructions? Who is to blame? With permission from Iowa Mock Trial Program Brunetti It was the dawn of another day in the sleepy hamlet of Lakeville. All around town commuters were filling their travel mugs, while children readied their backpacks for school. But there would be no school for Nicky Blanc or Jackie Potomski. Both lay dead on the basketball courts at Founders Park. Did Nicky single-handedly plan and carry out the murder of Jackie Potomski?

Or, was Shawn Burnett the mastermind, manipulating Nicky to do the dirty work? Adapted from Constitutional Rts. Nationally, students have found themselves suspended or expelled for infractions as benign as bringing a butter knife to school, or pointing a fun-shaped chicken strip at someone during lunch.

But what if the threat came from a student with a disability? Under the amendments to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, added in , procedures were established for schools seeking to discipline and remove a student with exceptional education needs EEN from this or her current educational placement or program.

Adapted from the State Bar of Wisconsin. Since grade school, his favorite part of any parade or halftime show was the beat of the drums. In the summer of , Chuck went to band camp on a mission… a mission to be accepted onto the line, and to enjoy all of the benefits of the increased social status that came with it. Chuck ended up dead after a fall from a foot clock tower. Case adapted from Street Law. Under normal circumstances, non-point pollution is a serious problem, but at times, the problem can be exacerbated and can result in tragic consequences.

A few days later three of the students became ill. William Mable, one of the students, died. Adapted from Wisconsin Case. Jamie Becker and Kim Hanks In the not-too-distant past, counterfeiting was a difficult and expensive endeavor. It required large printing presses and the ability to cut intricate designs by hand into metal plates.

Today it is much easier to create counterfeit bills. As thousands of teenagers discover every year, you can create fake money with a PC, a scanner and a color inkjet printer in about 10 minutes.

You can also face very serious consequences. Fearing a larger problem, Upham had all employees educated on methods to detect counterfeit bills. Or were they? Kris Hamburg. Lawrence and the Clearwater Police Department Evan Brooks, a year-old honors student at Clearwater High School, went shopping at the local grocery late one night. So late, in fact, that Brooks had to be asked to finish shopping so that the store could close.

What followed for Evan Brooks was almost six hours in police custody being searched, fingerprinted, and escorted to the courthouse in shackles. After being release, Brooks spent an additional three to four hours in the hospital for pain and injuries sustained during the incident. Now Brooks is bringing a civil suit against the security guard, the store, and the police. Were the actions of the security guard, the store, and the police justifiable? They will work together as a team to craft a strong, comprehensive, well-developed case that they will later present in competition.

Mock trial is a highly structured activity. There are certain parts of the trial that all teams must go through, such as opening statements, direct examinations, cross examinations, closing arguments, and more. All the components of the trial are strictly timed, and as such, students must be able to think quickly on their feet and communicate their points in a succinct yet effective manner. The exact time limits imposed on each aspect of the trial vary from state to state, so it is a good idea to check what regulations your specific state follows.

Some aspects of your case will likely be prepared in advance. For example, opening statements, which begin the trial, are usually scripted and rehearsed well before the actual competition.

Additionally, attorneys will generally thoroughly review their direct examinations on witnesses from their own side. However, other parts of your case must be developed on the fly, and change based on what the other team does throughout the course of the trial. As such, a strong Mock Trial participant must be able to think quickly on their feet.

Teams will generally thoroughly practice and build their case for several weeks or even months before competing. This includes team practices, scrimmages, and independent work on the case. Then, the actual competition begins with teams going up against other local schools. Usually, these competitions are organized according to county; however, this tends to vary depending on your specific location. Successful teams may then advance to state-level or even national-level tournaments.

However, it is important to note that not every state currently participates in the national tournament. Additionally, one should note that the national Mock Trial competition follows a completely different case booklet, meaning that successful teams will have to build a new case from scratch. Our free chancing engine takes into account your history, background, test scores, and extracurricular activities to show you your real chances of admission—and how to improve them. It gives students early experience in legal procedures, and a comprehensive, first hand look at what law looks like in practice.

Additionally, high school Mock Trial can help prepare you to compete in collegiate or law school level Mock Trial. On a more general note, Mock Trial also teaches students invaluable skills that are directly applicable to both academic and personal pursuits.

Students who participate in Mock Trial gain analytical skills from analyzing cases and facts, and learn how to compose effective arguments and respond to questions or disputes; these kinds of abilities are extremely useful in college-level writing and discussion in general. Mock Trial also provides students with the opportunity to develop their professionalism, confidence, and public speaking abilities, all of which are extremely important for both future academic and occupational endeavors.

Having these kinds of abilities is useful for college interviews, job interviews, class participation in the university setting, and other scenarios students are sure to encounter. Obviously, Mock Trial a great extracurricular activity for students who want to study or go into law, or who want to test out the field before committing to a pre-law major.

It can also help complement activities such as Speech and Debate, Junior State, student government, Model United Nations, and other similar extracurricular groups to help create a cohesive extracurricular profile that shows specialization in law and government. However, it can also be an extremely worthwhile pursuit for any future college student, as it allows participant to develop invaluable skills that are directly applicable to many different endeavors.

We hoped that armed with this guide, you have a better idea of what, exactly, Mock Trial entails.