News & Events

By Farah Suede 

Although later than usual, East Catholic High School’s mock trial teams have sprung into action to take on the case presented this year by Civics First CT. Over the past few meetings, club members have read through the case’s statements and began creating angles to take and points to argue. Though the format of the competitions will significantly change to accommodate the health and safety guidelines regarding Covid-19, the core of the mock trial remains the same. Two teams of three witnesses and three attorneys each create, one coined the Defense and the other the Prosecution. The team for the defense consists of juniors Taylah Pickering and myself, and senior Christine Duah as the attorneys defending the accused. The second team which will be acting as the prosecution consists of seniors Matthew Levin and Maddie Fischer, paired with sophomore Chadeon Rosemond. Over the next couple of weeks, the attorneys on each team will begin preparing a set of direct questions and a set of cross-examination questions for their respective witnesses. These questions allow the attorneys to tell the story from their perspective to the judge and the jury, with attorneys aiming to convince the two of the truth to their timeline and exhibits. From there, the attorneys and witnesses will then begin drilling over these questions to cement their ability to know the case. Upon completion, our two teams will be competing against other schools in the Connecticut qualifying competitions for a mock trial in January.