“We are grateful to the U.S. District Court for accommodating the mock trial competition and providing the venue once again,” mock trial coordinator Gretchen A. Smith stated. She added: “I am excited for this year’s competition. The topic resonates with issues facing the nation today.”
This year’s problem concerns an excessive force claim by a police officer against a minor in Gabriel Johnson Torres v. Department of Public Safety. The fact pattern presents an officer entering a classroom and requesting the minor to hand over his backpack. In doing so, the officer pepper sprays the minor and subsequently brings the minor to the principal’s office. Prior to this, the officer received a report from another student that he had seen the minor with a gun.
Marianas High School represented the CNMI at the national competition in Athens, Georgia from May 16-18, 2019. Emma Timmons received an award for outstanding attorney; only 10 from the nation receive the award.
The mock trial program, now in its twenty-second year, is sponsored by the CNMI Judiciary, the CNMI Public School System, the CNMI Bar Association and the Northern Marianas Judiciary Historical Society. The Saipan and Northern Islands Legislative Delegation has also provided funding for the local competition.
For more information, contact mock trial coordinator Gretchen A. Smith at [email protected].
