On Wednesday, April 6, the KO Mock Trial team placed first in the State Championship after winning their final competition against Ridgefield High School at the Hartford Supreme Court. Despite COVID-19 significantly altering the format of the championship, the team still managed to thrive, winning all five competitions as they took the lead over 45 other schools.
Mock Trial is an extracurricular activity that allows students to practice skills such as public speaking and on-the-spot thinking by embodying roles in a court setting with a set case for all of the competing schools. The mock trial team is split into two sides, the plaintiff and the defense, and each team is equipped with three witnesses and three lawyers, along with alternates, in case of sickness or scheduling conflicts.
The defense team’s attorneys were made up of senior Co-captain Pat Schwab, junior Manu Narasimhan, and junior Jordan DiMauro while the defense witnesses were played by senior Co-captain Caroline Boardman, junior Tess Chapman, and sophomore Charlie Simons. The plaintiff was made up of freshman Jessica Mulligan, senior David Shi, sophomore Jacob Mapp, freshman Yzzy Albert, freshman Clara Drag, and senior Will Wells.
Overseen by three justices from the Connecticut Supreme court, the KO defense team competed against Ridgefield’s plaintiff in this year’s case, taking on the issue of negligence. The assigned case dealt with a high school soccer player who sustained a life-altering head injury, and her parents sued the soccer club for negligence.
Faculty advisor and former Middle School English teacher Lynne Levine believes the team’s dedication is what earned them the win. “We had two weeks off, which means that Ridgefield had two weeks to practice that we did not,” she said. “When we got back we had practice Tuesday, Thursday, Sunday from 2:00 – 5:00, Tuesday, and Wednesday morning. They really kicked into gear.”
After each competition, the judges award the best lawyer or best witness to a member of one of the two teams. In the championship trial, Pat was named best lawyer, which is an amazing accomplishment. “We put our best effort in and worked really hard, and then, after that, to win an award was pretty cool,” Pat said.
To Tess, the team means much more than just the wins. “Obviously, the season-high was winning the state championship, but we had so many other successes,” she said. “Being a part of mock trial teaches you so much about the law, whether you are the number one lawyer or an alternate, and I am really grateful for that.”
Mrs. Levine is incredibly proud of the team as she reflects on the year and its challenges. “The captains had more of a leadership role this year, and they both stepped up and were amazing captains; I’m really proud of them!” she said. “I can’t say enough good things about all of them, I just love them all.”
Pat completely agreed that this year was a great note to go out on. “I’m proud of how far we’ve come and how hard we’ve worked,” he said. “We really put our all in, and I’m so proud of the team.”
