Catlin Gabel team wins third Mock Trial contest

Pamplin Media Group, Mar 18, 2010, Updated Mar 18, 2010 (1 Reader comment)

Catlin Gabel School claimed its third state Mock Trial title when it defeated Grant High School in the championship round March 13 at the Mark O. Hatfield Federal Courthouse in Portland.

The private school won the title in 2001 and 2004. Portland’s Grant High School finished second and two teams from Jesuit High School claimed third and fourth place.

Eighteen high school Mock Trial teams representing 15 high schools advanced from regional competition to claim a spot at the state championship. Catlin Gabel will compete at the national Mock Trial championships May 6 through 8 in Philedelphia.

Students argued a complicated criminal case that dealt with religious expression and freedom of speech issues.

The Catlin Gabel team is coached by social studies teacher Patrick Walsh. Bob Bonaparte of Shenker & Bonaparte, Jim Coon of Swanson Thomas & Coon, and Barb Gazeley of the Appellate Settlement Conference served as volunteer advisors to the team.

U.S. District Judge John Acosta presided over the championship round. Jurors were Jim Huffman, a Lewis & Clark Law School professor and current chairman of Classroom Law project; Drew Monecke, a West Salem High School teacher and 2009 Milkin Award winner; and U.S. District Judge Jean Maurer.

Classroom Law Project is an Oregon nonprofit that offers a range of programs, including mock trials and We the People competition, that help students understand what it means to be an informed citizen.

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