Students from three Oklahoma schools were in Pottawatomie County Tuesday as the courthouse was the setting for one of the qualifying rounds of the 2009-10 Oklahoma High School Mock Trial Program.
Students from Muskogee, Christian Heritage and Douglas challenged each other in three separate trials, two held in Courtroom No. 1 and one held in Courtroom No. 4.
Local attorneys Robert Butler, Allan Grubb and Tracy McDaniel served as judges for the mock trials, while Attorneys Brian Jones, Bill Roberson, Matt Thomas, Greg Wilson, Joe Vondran and Assistant District Attorney Sarah Worten volunteered to participate in the mock trials during this round of competition.
Trial site coordinator Jim Cole Pettis said each team rotated to take on both the role of prosecution and defense in the separate trials. Each trial had the same set of facts, he said, with this year’s focusing on a mock case of cyberstalking.
Pettis said he believes these types of programs do help students who are looking at possible careers in the legal profession.
The Oklahoma Bar Association-sponsored competition involves teams of students as they take on the roles of attorneys and defendants. The mock trials are heard by a judge and attorneys in a courtroom setting where individual and team performances are evaluated.
Out of the 47 teams competing in the statewide event, 24 teams will advance to the quarterfinal round and then Oklahoma’s winning team will represent the state in the national competition.
The Mock Trial Program is sponsored and funded by the OBA and the Oklahoma Bar Foundation. More than 400 judges and attorneys statewide volunteer their time to work with the teams as coaches and to conduct competitions.
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Students from three Oklahoma schools were in Pottawatomie County Tuesday as the courthouse was the setting for one of the qualifying rounds of the 2009-10 Oklahoma High School Mock Trial Program.
Students from Muskogee, Christian Heritage and Douglas challenged each other in three separate trials, two held in Courtroom No. 1 and one held in Courtroom No. 4.
Local attorneys Robert Butler, Allan Grubb and Tracy McDaniel served as judges for the mock trials, while Attorneys Brian Jones, Bill Roberson, Matt Thomas, Greg Wilson, Joe Vondran and Assistant District Attorney Sarah Worten volunteered to participate in the mock trials during this round of competition.
Trial site coordinator Jim Cole Pettis said each team rotated to take on both the role of prosecution and defense in the separate trials. Each trial had the same set of facts, he said, with this year’s focusing on a mock case of cyberstalking.
Pettis said he believes these types of programs do help students who are looking at possible careers in the legal profession.
The Oklahoma Bar Association-sponsored competition involves teams of students as they take on the roles of attorneys and defendants. The mock trials are heard by a judge and attorneys in a courtroom setting where individual and team performances are evaluated.
Out of the 47 teams competing in the statewide event, 24 teams will advance to the quarterfinal round and then Oklahoma’s winning team will represent the state in the national competition.
The Mock Trial Program is sponsored and funded by the OBA and the Oklahoma Bar Foundation. More than 400 judges and attorneys statewide volunteer their time to work with the teams as coaches and to conduct competitions.
