(Oklahoma City – March 5, 2008) Clinton High School’s team earned second place in the Oklahoma High School Mock Trial Competition. Del City’s Christian Heritage Academy won the championship and will represent Oklahoma in the national competition to be held in Wilmington, Del., in May.
The mock trial program involves students portraying attorneys and witnesses in a courtroom setting, with judges and attorneys evaluating their performance. The program, now in its 28th year, is sponsored by the Oklahoma Bar Association Young Lawyers Division and the Oklahoma Bar Foundation.
OBA President Bill Conger of Oklahoma City said, “Clinton gave a great performance that will only help them in future mock trials. Reaching the final round is quite an achievement and reflects the hard work of the students and their coaches.”
This year’s winners of the best attorney awards were Jessica Heard of Clinton High School and Ryan Morrisett of Christian Heritage Academy. Andrea Jaquez of Clinton and Amber Box of Christian Heritage Academy were chosen as the top witnesses.
Clinton High School’s team was coached by teacher Kathy Kelley and its attorney coaches Julie Strong and Mark Hendrickson. Returning for a third year on the team were Amanda Andrade, Joesuf Hernandez and Andrea Jaquez. Second-year team members were Gracious Arnette and Jerica Kehoe. New to the team were Kaylyn Baker, Angeline Breaux, Karson Brooks, Jamie Casias, Ruby Gubitz, Jessica Heard, John Lair, Zachary Lee, Jessica Ramirez, Jarrett Richert, Preslee Stephens and Pazlie Urbina.
Out of the 51 teams that began competing in January, the top finishers are, in third place, Ada High School; fourth, Jenks High School; fifth, Catoosa High School; sixth, Atoka High School; seventh, Holland Hall, Tulsa; and eighth, Broken Arrow High School.
Judge Edward Cunningham served as presiding judge during the contest finals. Scoring judges were Judge Daman Cantrell, Judge Kenneth Dickerson, Judge David B. Lewis, Judge Millie Otey and Judge Dana L. Rasure.
More than 400 judges and attorneys volunteered their time to work with mock trial teams as coaches and to conduct the competitions. Rachel McCombs of Oklahoma City served as chairperson of the Young Lawyers Division Mock Trial Committee.
The 15,000-member Oklahoma Bar Association, headquartered in Oklahoma City, was created by the Oklahoma Supreme Court to advance the administration of justice and to foster and maintain learning, integrity, competence, public service and high standards of conduct among Oklahoma’s legal community. The Oklahoma Bar Foundation awards annual grants that advance the science of jurisprudence and promote the administration of justice throughout the state. Its mission is "Advancing education, citizenship and justice for all." |
