WALLINGFORD - Reading through the details of armed robbery case riddled with legal jargon would intimidate some college-educated adults, but seventh- and eighth-grade students in the enrichment program at Dag Hammarskjold and Moran middle schools jumped at the opportunity, even though it offered no letter grade reward.

They have been studying the make-believe criminal court case State of New Justice v. Jessie Chandler since September, reading closely about a man accused of robbing a store with a .38-caliber handgun. They were assigned roles ranging from witness to attorney, and searched the documents - chosen by the Connecticut Consortium for Law & Citizenship Education and the Connecticut Bar Association - for details to draw inferences, organize information logically and present persuasively.

Jim Andreson, who teaches students in the Student Enrichment Program (STEP) at Moran, has been offering a mock trial competition as a voluntary after-school activity for the past 10 years. But last year was the first time Dag students jumped on board for a cross-town matchup.

Monday evening, the two schools came together again, as parents sat in the audience of three trials conducted simultaneously in different rooms at Dag.

According to Andreson and student participants, the mock trial is one of the most challenging programs of the school year.

"They're probably working harder than they would in most classes that they're taking," he said of the high achieving students who are selected for the enrichment program where they work on creative projects such as video programming and moviemaking in addition to core subject classes.

Apart from the students working on the case two or three class periods a week, nine area lawyers helped with preparation by leading after-school and occasional weekend workshops on topics such as preparing an opening statement. Three of the lawyers returned Monday to act as mock judges, scoring student performance in the competition, which was won by Moran students last year.

The extensive preparation paid dividends last week, when Wallingford cleaned up at a regional mock trial competition sponsored by the consortium. Eighth-grade students from both schools took all four top slots in Deep River and advanced to the state quarterfinals in January.

"It's a very interesting case that mirrors the real world," said Dag STEP teacher Nancy Harrington, of the case in which students deal with witnesses battling drug and mental health issues. "It's very reflective of real witnesses in real cases."

Dag student Sitara Zoberi, who played a lawyer, agrees with the teachers: Mock trial is probably the most challenging of all the projects, she said, wearing a professional blazer for the occasion. "You really have to think quick on your feet," Zoberi said.

Moran's Sam Urban, who played two roles, defendant and detective, was doing a little detective work of his own. After studying the case, he determined it was a conspiracy.

"I think everybody's in on it," said a confident Urban.

shernandez@record-journal.com

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