In its first year of competition, the success of Cotter High School’s Mock Trial team is anything but make believe.

The team, consisting of twelve students grades 9-12 is coached by Cotter social studies teacher, Evan Howard. Mr. Howard, a veteran of mock trial, has already led the team to a 10th place finish in the St. Paul Trials competition against 35 other schools.

As impressive as this may be, many people have not heard of mock trial or what it takes to prepare a team for competition.  Mock Trial is run by the Minnesota Bar Association as a way to introduce students to the workings of the American legal system.

“Mock trial is a competitive activity when students take on the roles of attorneys and witnesses to bring to life a trial,”Mr. Howard said.

“Witnesses essentially become the individuals they portray, basing all of their responses and behaviors off of a witness statement to bring the circumstances of the case to life.”

Students are graded on a scale of 0-10 by all judges based on their portrayal of either a lawyer or a witness. The cumulative scores are then added together and compared to scores of other teams. Judges also rate the top four witnesses and attorneys in each trial, who then receive special awards.

The team’s first competition was held on Saturday, January 7, at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minn. In addition to the 10th place finish, three Cotter team members were awarded for their performance in their trials. Cotter seniors Aidan Beckman, plaintiff attorney, and Samantha Knight, defense attorney, were awarded “Outstanding Attorney” awards. Freshman, Viva Graff, defense witness, was also awarded an “Outstanding Witness” award.

“It was amazing to see how far everyone had come. It took a lot of work and great deal of effort, but I would say the result we had was exceptional considering,”  senior Samantha Knight said.

“There is still a considerable amount of room to grow and improve, but luckily, we have time to do just that. Last weekend was simply the opening skirmish, the real battles have yet to come,” Knight added.

“This was my first competition and having just been switched to a different role at the last minute, it was a bit nerve-racking, but I could see that others were in a similar position, so I just relaxed and I even surprised myself at how well I did!” said freshman award winner, Viva Graff. “This weekend was a great experience for me to grow as a speaker and as a presenter.”

The mock trial team is guaranteed at least three more trials,  with the potential for more based on the team’s scores.  The team is looking to improve after getting their feet wet at the Macalester event.

“This is a tough activity, with a lot of very difficult concepts,” said Mr. Howard. “[I am] optimistic about our performances for future rounds, and I look forward to seeing the growth of the team over the next few weeks!”

https://www.mnbar.org/public/mock-trial#.WHZ2rVz-qxd  MN Bar Assoc.  Mock Trial page

http://www.mnbar.org/docs/default-source/mock-trial-forms/region-7-schedule-revised-1-9-17.pdf?sfvrsn=0   Region 7 schedule