The Mock Trial season is right around the corner, and now is a good time to educate everyone on Mock Trial as a club and why it is so cherished as an activity at our school.
Mock Trial consists of a trial where the prosecution and the defense compete for the ruling of the two jurors and a judge. The winner and loser are based on scores decided by the jury and the judge’s decision as to who won the case. Each side has three attorneys and also presents three witnesses. Each witness is given a score out of 10 for their direct examination, which is a conversation with a lawyer from their side, and a cross examination, which involves a lawyer from the opposing counsel. The score is related to their performance which is at the jury’s discretion. The prosecution goes first, and the defense second. The winner is the team that wins the majority (or two out of three) of the ballots. The top 16 teams in St. Louis advance to state at the end of the season and historically Priory has had a solid Mock Trial team.
When I entered Mock Trial as a freshman, the coaches and seniors alike told stories of the previous state teams and how dominant we had been. Unfortunately, that season was cut short by a vigorous Nerinx Hall team, which caught the sleep-deprived Riley Carlin off guard and knocked us out. Michael Mathis, Riley Carlin, and Mark Villa (‘23) taught me everything they knew about Mock Trial in an attempt to continue the legacy of a strong Priory Mock Trial team.
Now, I am entering my third year on mock trial (my second year on varsity) and am realizing the value of what my predecessors taught me. Likewise, I share my tips with the freshmen and sophomores this year. I don’t know what Mr. Dixon told the class of ‘28 last year, but whatever it was, it worked. They are fully committed.
We also have lawyers as our coaches to help with the process and presentation style, which is very valuable. It will be great for the younger students to learn the lay of the land this year and to see how playing against the other schools works. The wake-up call of facing a much stronger team is something that cannot be replicated.
I will never forget my first trial in freshman year on JV. We were set to face off against the previous state runner-up, the Clayton varsity team, which consisted of numerous seasoned veterans and strictly upperclassmen. We got blown away, of course, but the whole team will always remember that trial because of the first lawyer on Clayton. He spoke in a funny way, and would always repeat the phrase “smoke and mirrors,” which became an ongoing joke. We learned from this guy and defeated Visitation Academy in our next trial. We have come a long way as a team since then. Even though after my freshman year, two of our coaches with a legal background (Sam Willie and Mark Villa’s mothers) left, we persisted. They ran the ship and held things together, and for a moment the future of the program was in question. Mr. Dixon bravely stepped up and took control, organizing everything and bringing order to the program. He also brought in another lawyer to coach us and quickly educated himself on Mock Trial.
This year Mr. Dixon has recruited many underclassmen to Mock Trial. It is fair to say he saved the program and has allowed it to thrive. After this transition, we have a seasoned and experienced team ready to take on the case for the year and hope to make a run in the state tournament.
