By Samarah Guy  

Photo Courtesy: Mr. Zilli

GS’ Mock Trial team placed 3^rd during the State Championships in Harrisburg.  

On March 24^th, the team earned 1001 points by the end of the second trial, placing 3^rd out of the 14 teams in the championships.  

“We were the only team in our district to go to states, and we had the third most points out of everyone there,” Mock Trial Advisor Ms. Kristen Solomon said.  

Mock Trial is an organization that gives students the opportunity to take part in the courtroom and understand how the court system works while also competing against other schools. 

“Mock Trial is a program where students can actually try to participate in a ‘mock’ trial and have an experience similar to a real trial,” Ms. Solomon said. 

The main goals are to score more points than the opposing team and to win the case with strong evidence. 

“They are given a case, and the students are either attorneys or witnesses,” Solomon added. “They also have to write open and close directs and cross examinations to present at the Mock Trial.” 

Direct and cross-examinations come at the beginning of the trial, providing information on the case. The performance and content of the examinations, as well as the attorneys’ performances are graded on a scale of 1-10. The opening and closing statements are also scored on the same scale. At the end of the trail, all the points are added up, and that number is the team’s final score. 

“There’s a ballot that has everything that happens in the trial on it,” senior Lea Kasmer said. “There’s opening and closing statements from both prosecution and defense, along with six witnesses who each have a direct and a cross examination on the ballot. The judges and jury will score it on a scale of 1-10.”  

Mock Trial helps students see and understand the court system firsthand. This group can help set students up for their futures in law, and it also helps form bonds. 

“To me, Mock Trial is not only about building cases, but it’s really important to have a relationship with your team and communicate with everyone,” junior Katie Shea said.