Legal eaglets

Area high school students competing in Mock Trial Program lay down the law as they build a case and defend an argument

Phillips Academy's Rob Buka (top left) makes a point for the defense as members of the Central Catholic prosecution team listen. (Globe Staff Photo / Mark Wilson)

Johanny Lopez sat calmly in the witness box in a courtroom at Essex Superior Court in Lawrence, answering questions from the defense attorney. Although the lawyer tried to trip her up as she recounted her story, Lopez remained firm.

"Did I really seem relaxed? I was so nervous," she said when the judge called a recess. "I was so afraid I'd get confused, and I didn't want to blow it for my team."

Lopez, a student at Lawrence High School, was competing with nearly a dozen other classmates in the Mock Trial Program sponsored by the Massachusetts Bar Association. More than 100 high schools across the state have been taking part in the program, which began with preliminary trials at the end of January. In the competition, which continues through this month, each team presents the same case three times in regional competitions in real courtrooms and other venues around the state.

The early rounds included teams from Acton, Ayer, Belmont, Lexington, Medford, Methuen, North Reading, Reading, Tewksbury, Westford, Wilming ton, and two teams each from Andover, Lawrence, and Lowell. Ultimately, four teams will advance to semifinals on March 23, with the two winning teams competing on March 27 in Faneuil Hall in Boston.

"This is our third time through this trial," said Mark Staffier, a teacher at Wilmington High School and one of the coaches for the mock trial team, "so I think they're feeling more confident about how to handle questions."

The mock trial for all the teams revolves around a murder. The defendant, a military veteran, is using posttraumatic stress disorder as an insanity defense in the killing of a former high school classmate at a Fourth of July fireworks display.

Participating students choose a role to play in the trial, either witness or lawyer, and study affidavits and background information provided by the Massachusetts Bar Association. They meet after school once or twice a week to prepare for the trial with the help of teacher-coaches and lawyers who volunteer to advise them.

But Patrick Boque of Lawrence said it feels different in a real courtroom.

"You have to be able to think on your feet," he said, "and be prepared for whatever a witness might say. This is our first trial, and it's good to get out there."

Nick Russo, the cocaptain of the Wilmington team agreed.

"It's kind of like improvisation," he said. "No matter how prepared you are, you have to listen to what the witness says and be ready to adjust your questions based on their responses."

In another competition a few weeks later at the Massachusetts College of Law in Andover, Phillips Andover Academy was up against Central Catholic High School of Lawrence. Each school had won its three cases, and this tie-breaker would determine the regional champion. Central Catholic had won the regional championship for the past nine years, and the team's well-rehearsed confidence was obvious.

Coached by English and drama teacher Ashley Brown, with legal assistance from Michael Coyne, the 35 students on the team, led by senior Nadia Pereira, had clearly coordinated what they would say and how they would say it.

"We create the outline ahead of time," said Pereira, who has competed on the mock trial team all four years at Central. "It's important to be consistent even when different people are presenting."

These two teams offered spirited objections to lines of questioning, and tried hard to catch witnesses' inconsistencies. Hoonie Moon of Phillips was clearly annoyed by Colleen Shea's cross-examination of a witness, while Justin McDevitt, a Central Catholic senior who said he hopes to go on to law school, was particularly aggressive with a witness.

"I try to read the judge's reactions, to see if I'm pushing it," said McDevitt. "But [judge Sheryl Bourbeau, a Lowell lawyer] overruled the defense's objections, so I felt like it was OK."

This was Phillips Andover's first year competing in the mock trials, and seniors Alex Gottfried and Ande Zhou said they were impressed with the professionalism of Central Catholic's team.

"We won every other trial by 28 points," he said, "but this is the highest level of competition we've faced."

In the earlier round, the Wilmington team had a bit of an advantage since the meeting with Lawrence High School was its third time through this trial. They had won their case against Dracut High School, but lost against Phillips Andover Academy.

"Each time we present, I think we get better," said Scott Bonish, a Wilmington High School senior, whose cross-examination of a doctor who treated the defendant built to the conclusion he wanted. "You have to leave the witness with the judge on your side."

When one team's lawyer raised an objection, the judge, David Baker, a Boston bankruptcy lawyer, called both sides over for a sidebar conference. Both teams looked nervous, but later, during a recess, Baker explained that being called to the sidebar is common in court, and he wanted to make the experience as much like a real courtroom as possible.

"I really enjoy judging these mock trials," said Baker. "I've done it for about five or six years now, and I'm always impressed with the amount of preparation the students do in advance. I often tell them they should pursue legal careers, but not to start practicing until after I retire because I don't want to have to face them in a trial."

At the conclusion of each trial, the judge issues a decision and explains it.

In the competition between Wilmington and Lawrence High, both teams had done an excellent job preparing their cases, judge Baker said, but he decided in favor of Wilmington on the basis of the team's legal argument for the defense.

Similarly, in the Central Catholic-Phillips Andover matchup, judge Bourbeau praised both teams for their presentations and legal arguments, but decided in favor of the defense, Phillips Andover, by a four-point margin. Both teams seemed stunned, but Phillips Andover Academy would go on to the Sweet 16 round - along with two other teams from the area, Lowell Catholic High School and Westford Academy - and hope to make it to Faneuil Hall on March 27.

Kathryn Sullivan, one of the Lawrence High School coaches, said she was impressed by the students' commitment.

"They take this very seriously," she said.

Every one of the students is dressed for court, with the young men all in suits and the young women in conservative skirts and dresses.

"When they take on a character, they study the affidavit and then come up with questions, and we review what questions would be appropriate to sway the argument in our favor," said Sullivan.

Patrick Boque, of Lawrence, said it didn't matter who won the case. "It was a difficult case to prove by either side," he said, "but digging into how a trial comes together and all the research that has to be done has been a great experience."

Terry Byrne can be reached at trbyrne@aol.com.