The verdict is in, and Murrieta Valley High School from the Murrieta Valley Unified School District emerged victorious after seven rounds of competition concluded at the 41st Annual Riverside County Mock Trial Competition on Thursday, February 23.
At the final round held at Riverside’s Historic Courthouse, Martin Luther King High School played the role of the prosecution and Murrieta Valley High School filled the role of the defense.
Murrieta Valley High School will now represent Riverside County at the California Mock Trial competition in Los Angeles, on March 17-19, 2023. The National Mock Trial Competition will be held on May 18-20, 2023, in Little Rock, Arkansas.
In the semifinal round held on Tuesday, February 21, defending champion Notre Dame High School was defeated by Martin Luther King High School, and Murrieta Valley High School eliminated Hemet High School to earn a spot in the championship round.
This year’s case, People vs. Franks, revolved around the trial of Jordan Franks, a young actor who finished a run of performances of the Shakespeare adaptation Macbeth at Sea on the cruise ship Heart of the Ocean. Franks was charged with robbery and battery of Franks’ fellow actor, Billie Scher. The alleged crime was the subject of the fictional court case that nearly 400 students from high schools in Riverside County had been arguing during multiple rounds of competition in Indio, Murrieta, and Riverside courtrooms since January 26, 2023.
Mock Trial involves students arguing cases in front of real judges and scored by real attorneys. The competition is open to all students in grades 9 through 12 enrolled in public and private high schools in Riverside County. Teams consist of 8-25 students filling the courtroom roles of defense and prosecution attorneys, witnesses, clerks, and more. For the first time in the history of Riverside County Mock Trial, the role of courtroom artists was integrated into the competition. On February 11, more than a dozen students were honored for top performances with blue ribbons and prestigious internships in local legal organizations after the fourth round of competition.
In 2022, the first-time winner, Notre Dame High School, defeated Poly High School (Riverside USD). For a complete listing of the schedules and locations for all rounds of the competition, visit www.rcoe.us/student-events/mock-trial.
The Riverside County Mock Trial is sponsored by the Riverside County Office of Education (RCOE), the Riverside County Bar Association (RCBA), and the Riverside County Superior Courts, in cooperation with the Constitutional Rights Foundation (CRF). Since 1983, more than 13,500 Riverside County students have participated in Mock Trial.