The verdict is in, and Poly High School from Riverside Unified School District has been named the overall champion at the 33rd Annual Riverside County Mock Trial Competition after defeating Murrieta Valley High School in the finals on Saturday, March 5, 2016, at the Riverside Historic Courthouse. In the semi-final round, Poly High School defeated Hemet High School and Murrieta Valley High School defeated King High School. Competing in the final matchup as the defense, the victory by Poly High School represents their 16th Riverside County Mock Trial championship in the 33 years the competition has been held locally. 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, clerk, and more. The Poly High School squad will represent Riverside County at the California Mock Trial competition to be held March 18-20 in Sacramento. In this year’s event, students were arguing the fictional case entitled, People v. Hayes, the trial of Jamie Hayes, a student at Central Coast University (CCU) on a track and field scholarship. Hayes faces a felony charge of murder for the homicide on May 15, 2014, of Lee Valdez, a campus security guard. Hayes was raising the affirmative defense of another in order to claim the homicide was justifiable.

Riverside Poly High School Named Mock Trial Champion for Fifth Time in Six Years