Verdict Is In At Mock Student Trial Young Legal Eagles Learn About The Law Through Hands-On Experience In Class And In Court

Despite the crowd, the courtroom is hushed. The prosecuting attorney shuffles through his briefcase. Attorneys for the defense confer in whispers.

Only a few details suggest it’s not an ordinary trial - the can of Sprite on the table, the sneakers one attorney wears with his tie. No one looks much older than 18.

With careful formality, evidence is entered. Opening statements are made.

Silver Valley High School students have been preparing for a month for this mock trial, staged in a courtroom at the Public Safety Building. In science they studied fingerprinting; in English, legal terms. In history, they discussed court cases that shaped federal law.

Each of the alternative school’s 28 students has a role.

“Several of our students have already had a brush with the legal system. It’s fun to let them look at the process from different sides,” said SVHS director George Heaton.

As the morning wears on, arguments grow heated. The occasional mistake elicits giggles. But everyone remains intent.

The scenario, created by the Idaho Law Foundation for its mock trial contest last year, involves arson at the headquarters of an unpopular cult.

The defense wants to establish that it would have been physically impossible for the defendant to have started the three fires. A map figures prominently.

The prosecution hammers on the fact that the defendant led local opposition to the cult, going so far as to create a group whose motto is “Fight fire with fire.”

“Objection!” yells defense attorney Melanie Thompson, who has her sights on law school in real life. “The prosecution is badgering the witness.”

The scenario allows for surprises. The verdict could go either way.

“There’s room for the witnesses to forget, embellish, lie … I tell the attorneys, you just have to deal with it,” Heaton said.

The mock trial, the school’s third in four years, is not the students’ only chance to work with the issue of justice. When an SVHS student is expelled, he or she must apply to a student review board for re-admission. The board, made up of five student council members, heard its most recent appeal on Thursday. The applicant was readmitted.

“Appeals court is easier because it’s just us,” said Naomi Lawson, one of the mock trial’s two judges. “This trial thing is pretty complicated.”

Justin Sexton, prosecuting attorney for the day, finds the real-life situation harder to deal with. “Here, even if we lose, we go out winners because of what we learned. Judging a fellow student, you affect their life.”

Around noon, closing arguments are heard. The jury delivers a quick verdict, perhaps influenced by thoughts of lunch.

The defendant, played by Denise Smiley, is not guilty.

“Yes,” Thompson shouts from her seat. “I knew we made our point.”

Smiley looks relieved. “That was intense,” she said. “I never want to go through that for real.”