The gavel was brought down January 8 at 7:30 am. This gavel represented the 2013 mock trials starting. Argument 1 has been doing this mock trial project for many years now. Juniors and seniors alike dress up to battle it out in the court room. The students are given parts in the courtroom such as lawyers, witnesses, the defendant, and the jury, with a real Pittsburgh attorney presiding as judge.

 Since the first court scheduling, in just about every class you can see a student dressed up and doing some last minute preparation for their court date, whether it’s getting their opening speech down to perfection or studying some last minute details that they will be grilled on by the lawyers. The entire school participates in this event in the fact that students are allowed to go in and watch their fellow students in a courtroom setting.

Students participating in this class love the mock trial. “It was the best week of my life,” said DJ Errera. Melissa John and Nicole Jelinek said that they both “Love the mock trial” and thought it was great idea and great opportunity to see what a courtroom is really like.

I was able to sit in for a few trials, and I was surprised by how official everything went during them. The students worked hard on their cases, and it is no surprise that this is a continuing tradition.