Newsroom

District Court in Los Angeles Hosts Students
from 11 High Schools

One of the visiting high school classes pose for a group photo outside the courthouse.

June 8, 2006 — The U.S. District Court for the Central District of California commemorated Law Day by conducting mock trials in early May with some 700 students from 11 Los Angeles area high schools as participants - acting as judges, attorneys, court officials and jurors.

The scripted trials were designed to give students greater insights into the trial process in federal courts and how legal issues can touch people's lives.

The district's Law Day has grown in popularity each year. This year, the court had to put students from six additional high schools on a waiting list. Because of the large number of students, multiple juries were used for each mock trial. Each jury, after deliberating, announced its verdict in open court.

The students also were told about various trial roles, and learned about the U.S. Marshals Service's SWAT and K-9 teams.

Other federal courts around the country marked Law Day 2006 in a variety of similar outreach efforts.