Josh Devine

Jake Winograd and Hobey Alton stand in the courtroom after their first Mock Trial competition. Winograd joined the club this year and prepared for months for the big day. “I was super excited but a bit nervous for the first trial, we lost but it was a good learning experience,” Winograd said.

Ladue’s Mock Trial team attended a competition Tuesday, Jan. 14. The competition was located at the Clayton County CourtHouse, and was attended by a number of St. Louis schools. From Ladue, 4 teams attended, including over 24 students. 

Mock Trial is a competition set up to help students understand the legal system and how a trial works. Students will either take the role of witness or attorney for the round, and each team is placed on either defense or prosecution. 

“[Students] start to figure out what the legal system looks like,” said Allen Stringer, a business and marketing teacher in Ladue as well as the assistant coach for Mock Trial. “It’s a lot of problem solving and communication skills, and that’s where I think the benefit comes from.”

Sophia Pesce (10), has been on Mock Trial for two years, following in her older sister’s footsteps. Pesce attended the competition and acted as a witness for the prosecution side.

“[My team] is similar to the people from last year, so we’ve come to work well together,” said Pesce. “During practice, we all write out our scripts and do practice trials because the actual trial can get pretty intense.”

Over the course of three hours, students compete against teams from other schools on their case. Students are able to develop their skills in the courtroom, and their overall communication skills. 

“It’s about your ability to speak and articulate your thoughts and argue,” said Stringer. “And to argue in a civil, professional way.”

One student, Eric Hurt (11), joined Mock Trial because he always wanted to be a lawyer. During the competition last week, Hurt played as a witness for his team. 

“My favorite moment was watching the objections,” said Hurt. “As well as seeing how my team did after all the hard work we put in.” 

Teams are given points throughout the trial for their speeches and actions. At the end, the team with the most points wins. At this competition two of the four teams Ladue sent won their trials. The teams were a mix of newer and more experienced members. 

“Especially for the newer members, this was their first one,” said Stringer. “You could tell after, there was just a weight off their shoulders.”