High school teams from throughout Riverside County will match wits and attempt their best legal maneuvering next month when the 43rd annual Riverside County Mock Trial Competition gets underway.
The event is slated to start on Jan. 21 at the Larson Justice Center in Indio, the Southwest Justice Center in Murrieta and the Riverside Hall of Justice, continuing until the last week of February, when the semi-final and final rounds will be held.
The mock trials contest typically draws about 400 students from more than 20 high schools each year, according to the Office of Education.
The event returned to in-person meets instead of virtual ones in 2023 after the public school system rescinded COVID-driven restrictions on gatherings that were in place during the 2021 and 2022 events. The 2020 competition was held prior to the school closures.
The Office of Education, in partnership with the Constitutional Rights Foundation, Riverside County Bar Association and the Superior Court, sponsor the competitions annually. The county began holding student-level mock trials in 1983. More than 14,000 youths have participated since then, organizers said.
This year’s contest will challenge participants to successfully argue the fictitious case of People v. Clark, involving a homicide, according to the Office of Education. Students will be tasked with analyzing forensic evidence, the legality of warrants, possible due process infringements and other matters during the trials.
Teams consisting of eight to 25 students will play the parts of deputy district attorneys, defense attorneys, bailiffs, witnesses, clerks and investigators. Contestants are given an allotted time, generally four to six minutes, at each stage of a proceeding, including opening and closing statements and cross-examinations.
Practicing attorneys and judges assess students’ performance, awarding points in accordance with criteria established for the contest.
Students from public and private high schools may take part.
The 2025 championship team will represent the county in the California Mock Trial Competition, scheduled March 14-16 in Los Angeles.
Poly High School in Riverside won the county’s 2024 contest.