The Community High School Mock Trial team prepared for only a couple of weeks to compete in the Empire Mock Trial competition that took place this weekend. Every Monday and Wednesday, they questioned witnesses, practiced objections, and wrote closing and opening statements. Then on May 17, they arrived at the G.G. Brown Lab Building on U of M’s North Campus and logged onto Zoom.
Unlike other competitions this year, which took place in courtrooms, the Empire Mock Trial competition happened virtually. Empire is an international competition, so CHS teams competed against students from around the globe.
Freshman Andrea Skerlos, a defense lawyer, thought there were pros and cons to the Zoom format.
“Well, I didn’t know how to impeach anybody [on Zoom], so that was harder, but I did enjoy it,” Skerlos said. “I do prefer it in person, but it was still fun.”
Due to technical difficulties, the first trial on Saturday was delayed almost two hours. After that, however, the technology worked more smoothly.
The team was divided into three individual teams: Premier, which included the majority of the seniors and members with the most experience, and then Sapphire 1 and Sapphire 2. Premier won all four of their rounds—two prosecution and two defense—putting them in 2nd place out of 70 teams. Sapphire 1 won the defense on Saturday and the prosecution on Sunday. Sapphire 2 won one of three rounds.
Empire was a great opportunity for first-time competing members to learn the ropes of competing. Isla Carlson, a freshman on Sapphire 1, played a prosecution lawyer for her first time competing.
“It was terrifying. And when we lost, and I felt like we would lose both rounds, I was not very motivated,” Carlson said. “But I think losing motivated me to do more, and honestly, I wished for a third round, because I was so mad. But we won, and I think I want to be a lawyer next year.”
Sadie Palay, a freshman and first-time defense lawyer on Sapphire 1, also found the experience fun and challenging. “I had a great time hanging out with my team, and singing karaoke with people,” Palay said.
But the thing she was most proud of was her team winning the Spirit of Empire, a sportsmanship award.
“It means basically all the teams voted us for being super friendly and good natured and just great to work with, and not mean,” Palay explained.
This competition was also a chance for more experienced members to flex their skills and try things they can’t do in the main season. Witnesses could use fun costumes, and lawyers could use demonstratives like slideshows and animations when they presented their case.
CHS senior and co-captain of the Premier League team, Sam Austin, thinks that one main difference between Empire and in-person competitions is that, on Zoom, you don’t have to be in character 100% of the time, which can be exhausting. However, this leads to the fact that Zoom trials have a different energy than in-person ones.
“Being in person really adds to the vibe, and it really adds to the sense of urgency and competition,” Austin said. “And that’s a lot of what I love about mock trial.”
Another Premier League team member, Kaylee Gadepalli, agrees that Zoom trials require a different competing style.
“It’s definitely very different in how you present yourself, which is a huge part of mock trial,” Gadepalli said. “In some cases, your whole body is not on camera, so you have to do a little bit more with your face and your hand gestures to really get your point across.”
Gadepalli said that the trickiest round was the third, in which the Premier League defense faced off against a team from Minnesota. “The other side had some really good witnesses, some really good arguments were made,” Gadepalli said. “Their accents were incredible.”
Despite the fierce competition, the Community Premier League team prevailed, and will be competing in the play-offs in three weeks. As this is the farthest a CHS mock trial team has ever gotten in Empire, excitement is building and hopes are high for the upcoming championship.
