The St. Paul High School Mock Trial Team will compete in the regional competition on February 7th after advancing from the Huron County Courthouse District on Friday, January 17th. Mock Trial is a statewide competition that involves over 300 schools across Ohio, organized and managed by the Ohio Center for Law-Related Education (OCLRE). This program offers an innovative way for students to learn about the law and the legal system. With guidance from teachers and volunteer legal advisors, students participate in a completely unscripted trial, taking on roles such as attorneys, witnesses, and bailiffs/timekeepers. Each year, OCLRE and a team of volunteers create an original case centered around a constitutional issue that forms the basis of the trial. Competitors are judged based on their performance in the simulated trials.
Each Mock Trial team will present their case as both the prosecution and defense. Teams are randomly paired against another team, switching sides and opponents in each trial. A panel of 2-3 volunteers will serve as judges during the trial and each will evaluate student performance.
The St. Paul Team Members that will be moving on to regional competition are Chloe Hazelwood, Isabelle Rizzo, Brock Bores, Jillian Weilnau, Kailey Clark, Bryce Cook, Lucy Dolce and Allyson Takcas. Other members of the team include Jenny Schwan, Jacqueline Ott, Ava Englert, Alia Bogard, Clover Ruffing, Lucas Bohl, Vinny Caizzo, Micah Sumpter, Wyatt Houser, Chai Ruffing, Tristan Newell, Javier Galindo, Lucy Kowalski, Mason Barman, Molly McFadden, and Meredith Bores.
Winning individual awards at the Huron County District Level were best witnesses Brock Bores and Molly McFadden and best attorney Isabelle Rizzo.