Mock Trial Thur/Friday

Cross-examination

Each team will need lawyers assigned to witnesses from the opposing side. Your job is to cross-examine them to emphasize points you would like to make, points that weaken their argument. Cross-examination is all about poking holes in the other side's argument so that you win. 

You will need to anticipate what points they will be making and ask Yes/No questions to point out for the jury that their argument is flawed.

Cross-examination Questioning

Today your team needs to find three weak points in each of the opposition's testimony.

You will then write a series of questions that will point out the weakness in that testimony.

To practice, three of your team members will pretend to be the witnesses for the other side and each will work with an attorney. During the trial next time, this attorney will cross-examine the real witness, so this is practice.
ASSIGNMENT:
AS A TEAM, DISCUSS ALL THREE OF THE OTHER SIDE'S WITNESSES AND FIND A FEW PROBLEMS WITH THEIR TESTIMONY. THESE ARE YOUR AREAS OF ATTACK AND YOU WILL WEAKEN THEIR ARGUMENT BY DISCREDITING THEIR WITNESS TESTIMONY (do this the way we did the True Story of the Three Little Pigs)
PLOTNIK
Point 1.
  "You said that _____, right?"
  "And you also said ______, correct?"
  "And you said _____, didn't you?"
Point 2.
Point 3.
DR. GRACIAN
1.
2.
3.
BECK
1.
2.
3.
----------
OR
CODY
Point 1.
  "You said that _____, right?"
  "And you also said ______, correct?"
  "And you said _____, didn't you?"
Point 2.
Point 3.
OFFICER KRIPKE
1.
2.
3.
DR. HOBBES
1.
2.
3.

The True Story of the Three Little Pigs

What points in his story of Alexander T. Wolf sound a bit hard to believe?

Write down at least three.

What questions could you ask to point out the weakness in his argument?

Writing Your Opening Statement

Mock Trial: Beck Martin v. The State of Utah

HOW TO WRITE A DEFENSE CLOSING ARGUMENT FOR MOCK TRIAL

HOW TO WRITE A PROSECUTION OPENING STATEMENT FOR MOCK TRIAL

HOW TO WRITE A DEFENSE OPENING STATEMENT FOR A MOCK TRIAL

HOW TO WRITE A PROSECUTION CLOSING ARGUMENT FOR MOCK TRIAL

HOW TO WRITE A PROSECUTION OPENING STATEMENT FOR MOCK TRIAL

Here is a template and suggestions for writing a prosecution opening:

THE INTRODUCTION

Good afternoon, my name is so-and-so, and it is my pleasure to represent the State of Columbus and to serve as a prosecutor on this very important case. On June 14th, 2018, the defendant in this matter [describe in detail what he or she is alleged to have done]. [You may choose to point to the accused at this time [and other times of the trial] for dramatic effect.] At the conclusion of the case, and after you have heard all the evidence, we are confident that you will return a verdict of guilty.

THE THEME:

Ladies and gentlemen, this case is about… [a man who cannot control his anger] or [a woman whose own greed got the better of her] or [an individual who is feigning insanity because he was caught red-handed and has no other possible defense.] Try to summarize your case and your position in a sentence or two. It is difficult to think about themes in the abstract. When you see court cases on the TV news or on Law and Order think about the themes of those cases.

SUMMARIZE EACH WITNESS:

Examples:

Members of the jury, the State will call three different witnesses in this trial. We will call Detective Smith who will testify that he was on duty in Jefferson County on the night of the murder, and he witnessed the defendant’s car fleeing the scene at high speed. While we will admit the detective did not see who was in the car, the prosecution will be calling the victim’s neighbor to the stand, and the neighbor will explain that she clearly saw the defendant flee the crime scene with a weapon still in his hand. Lastly we will call a very experienced psychiatrist who will testify that he did a thorough mental health evaluation of the defendant in this matter. The psychiatrist will testify that the accused as sane at the time of the killing, and suffered from no medically recognized psychological defect.

or

Members of the jury, the State will call three witnesses to the stand. The first witness will be Mr. Hernandez who will testify that he was at his place of work at 7-11 when the defendant attacked at the check-out counter and did so without provocation. We will call the emergency room doctor who will testify that Mr. Hernandez sustained a broken nose and an orbital fracture. Lastly, the prosecution will call the defendant’s girlfriend to the stand who will testify that the defendant boasted about robbing Mr. Hernandez when he returned home late that night.

[These samples I have provided are obviously quite brief. You will want to provide a lot more details. Studies show that many jurors are likely to make up their mind about a case after simply hearing the opening statement. After a person has made up their mind, it can be hard to change their opinion. You will want to highlight all the important evidence you have. But keep in mind the time limits that your mock trial competition sets. Work with your teammates in this respect.]

CONCLUSION:

After you have heard all the evidence, we would ask that you find the defendant guilty as charged on all counts. Thank you.

HOW TO WRITE A DEFENSE OPENING STATEMENT FOR A MOCK TRIAL

INTRODUCTION:

Good afternoon members of the jury, my name is so-and-so, and I together with my colleagues, represent the defendant in this case [name]. The defendant stands here today wrongly accused of the crime of______, a very serious matter. At the end of this trial, we are going to ask you to render a verdict of not guilty, the only appropriate verdict.

THE THEME:

Members of the jury, this case is of [mistaken identity] or [My client punched Mr. Jones, but did so out of self-defense] or [my client did stab her husband, but was temporarily insane due to mental illness]. [There are a limited number of defenses to a criminal charge in a court of law. I cannot list them all here, but a defense lawyer should always be able to summarize his or defense in one or two sentences. Sometimes it is the position of the defense that the defendant is not guilty of the charge as alleged, but is guilty of a lesser charge. (For example, my client struck the victim with a stick, but the stick was too small to count as a “assault with a deadly weapon.”)]

CONTRADICT THE STATE’S THEORIES:

A common defense attorney strategy in opening statements is to start critiquing the state’s case, and letting the jury know that there are two sides to the story. Remember that as a defense attorney, you get the last word in opening statements. The prosecutor has to go first and unlike closing arguments, they may not speak again and rebut what you have to say. So take the opportunity to shoot holes in their case. In theory, you can reserve your opening statement until after the prosecution has rested, but this is rarely done (particularly in mock trial competitions). So how do you contradict the prosecutor’s opening? Here are some examples:

Members of the jury the prosecutor explained in her opening statement that her witness Mrs. Wong will testify that she witnessed the robbery from across the parking lot and she identified my client as the guilty party. However, Mrs. Wong will herself admit that it was very dark and rainy that night, and that she admitted she was only “90 percent sure” it was my client.

Or:

The prosecutor explained in his opening statement that my client confessed to the murder. However, this “confession” only happened after my client was with the police for 14 hours straight, and was kept up all night without any food or even any water.

So it is your job from the start to explain to the jury that there are two sides to the story.

Having coached mock trial for over 20 years, one thing I have noticed is that in every mock trial packet, there are little inconsistencies in both sides of the case for lawyers to point out in their presentations. However, it also does seem like there are some inconsistencies that are not terrible relevant, and you do not have to cover all of them due to the time restrictions. Even in real trials, lawyers make tactical decisions to not cover everything they possible could due to the limited attention span of jurors.

SUMMARIZE EACH WITNESSES’ TESTIMONY:

Members of the jury, as the defense attorney, I will call three witnesses to testify. My first witness will be Doctor Jerome McGinnis. He will testify that he has been a psychologist for 30 years, and his specialty is forensic psychology. He will testify that he did an evaluation of my client and found him to be insane due to paranoid schizophrenia. My second witness will my Martha Jackson, who is a school psychologist at Lakeside High, where my client went to school. She will testify that my client suffered from mental illness dating back to 1999. Lastly my third witness will be Antonio Garza. Mr. Garza will testify that he was roommates with my client when he was in college, and he will testify as to the psychological breakdown that my client suffered during his years at Columbus University.

Laying out each witness’s expected testimony sequentially is a little formulaic and can come across as a little dry sometimes. Overreliance on this structure will mean you are unlikely to win a mock trial national championship, but if this is your first competition, a structure like this will be a good starting point. As you progress in the competition, you can vary from the formula to make it a little unpredictable and think on your feet a bit more.

CONCLUSION:

At the conclusion of this trial, the defense will ask that you find that our client is not guilty. The prosecution will not meet their burden of proof. Thank you.

MONDAY, MARCH 18, 2019

How to write a Mock Trial Opening Statement

COMPONENTS OF A SUCCESSFUL OPENING ARGUMENT

There are four major elements to a complete opening argument. Although the exact structure and order of these elements within the overall argument will vary, it is important to include significant detail about each in order to lay the proper groundwork for the case an attorney intends to present. The elements include:

1. A factual and sequential overview of the major facts in the case important to the presenting attorney’s side. The amount of storytelling involved will vary depending on many factors, including whether the argument is for the prosecution or the defense team.

Because the prosecution team presents their opening statement first, and because they have the burden of proof (the requirement to prove the defendant guilty), their opening will include much more storytelling. Often, a prosecution opening statement can be structured entirely around the storyline of the case. Such an intensive retelling is not necessary for the defense, as they must simply cast a reasonable doubt on the allegations made. Thus, a defense opening will often include a story of much more limited scope and one targeted specifically towards the prosecutorial weaknesses of the case.

2. A description of what the prosecution or defense intends to prove or show. For the prosecution, this should be a statement of the charges, and the corresponding list of actions the defendant must have taken to be found guilty. This statement should be accompanied by a short description of what exactly the defendant did. For the defense, a focus should be placed on the weakest legal elements that the prosecution must prove. Mock trial cases will never favor one side over the other, so there will always be the opportunity to poke holes in the argument of the other side.

For example, if the prosecution must prove “malice aforethought” by the defendant, but the defense will call a character witness to testify to the defendant’s good nature, this should be brought up in the opening statement. One thing the defense should take care to avoid is appearing to argue their case with the opening statement. The opening statement is not the place to draw legal conclusions, as no evidence has been presented yet. The opening statement is the place to present a side’s theory of the case and any important facts that will come to light during the trial.

3.  A short explanation of the evidence that will be presented. For the prosecution, this can include actual physical evidence, such as a diagram or letter. These should be referenced and used during opening statements by the prosecution. Additionally, both the prosecution and defense should be sure to emphasize particularly important facts to their side during the opening. If the defense plans to have a witness testify who will provide an alibi for the defendant, this should be brought up in the opening.  

4. A short description of what each of the witnesses will testify. This provides a roadmap for the judge and scoring attorneys and helps them know what to expect from each witness. It often helps to present a side’s witnesses in the order that they will appear. This allows for a streamlined introduction to the facts, as well as the structure of the case, and minimizes confusion created by varying orders.

To summarize, the four elements of a successful opening argument are an overview of the major facts of the case, a description of what the prosecution/defense intends to argue, a description of the evidence to be presented, and a description of each witness’ testimony.  By including these four elements into an opening argument, an attorney will be sure to cover all the bases necessary for a solid case foundation and will fill in any gaps of knowledge the judge may have, allowing them to focus entirely on the direct examination of witnesses that follows.