Celebrating the Program's 30th Anniversary—Glenwood Springs Wins State Championship, 0515 COBJ, 2015, May, Pg. 15
| Author | Carolyn Gravit, J. |
In and Around the Bar
CBA High School Mock Trial Program
Celebrating the Program's 30th Anniversary—Glenwood Springs Wins State Championship
Carolyn Gravit, J.
This marks the thirtieth year of the CBA High School Mock Trial program, which is sponsored by the CBA Litigation Section and the Colorado Bar Foundation. More than 100 high school teams participate and approximately 1,500 students perform as attorneys and/or witnesses in a mock court case. Hundreds of attorneys, judges, teachers, and other community leaders volunteer their time to this educational program, which instructs students about the judicial system and guides them through the trial process.
2015 Case Problem
A co-ed fraternity house burned down during a popular bid day recruitment party on a college campus. Students from around the state argued both sides of the case. Conflicting statements from witnesses provided differing perspectives about who was at fault for first-degree arson that resulted in an attempted extreme indifference murder charge.
Participants
Twenty-four high school teams from across Colorado competed at the CBA State Mock Trial Tournament on March 20 and 21, which was held at the El Paso County Judicial Center in Colorado Springs. Before that, teams from across the state competed in nine regional tournaments.
The championship round featured Glenwood Springs and Pueblo West High Schools. This was Pueblo West's first time at the State Tournament. Volunteers remarked throughout the tournament that Pueblo West performed exceedingly well. Advancing undefeated to the championship round during its inaugural year was a great accomplishment for the students, coaches, and school.
Denver Public Schools General Counsel and former Colorado Supreme Court Justice Alex Martinez presided over the championship round, along with 4th Judicial District (J.D.) Chief Judge Gilbert Martinez, 4th JD Judge David Shakes, El Paso County Court Judge Regina Walters, former Colorado Springs City Attorney Jack Donley, Executive Director of the El Paso County Bar Association Zelna Joseph, CBA Past President Dave Johnson, and CBA Litigation Section Council member Peter Goldstein.
Glenwood Springs High School will advance to the National Mock Trial Championship in Raleigh, North Carolina on May 14-16. There, team members will argue a new case...
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