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Mock Trial Students Compete
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Nine high schools, including Escalon, are competing this week in the 2014 Mock Trial Competition in Stockton.

In this true-to-life competition, high school teams debate fictitious cases before presiding superior court judges and scoring attorneys at the 2014 San Joaquin County Mock Trial Competition. Cases involve contemporary issues and pre-trial arguments.

Round 1 of the competition was staged on Tuesday, Feb. 18 and still to come this week is Round 2, scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 20 at 5:30 p.m., with the competition at the San Joaquin County Courthouse, 222 E. Weber Ave., Stockton.

The defense took center stage Tuesday night, the prosecution will be on Thursday night and both teams will present their case on Saturday. The first round Saturday will be at 8:15 a.m. and the second at 11 a.m., also at the Courthouse.

The Awards Ceremony is planned on Saturday, Feb. 22 at 3:30 p.m., in the Federal Building at 401 N. San Joaquin St., Stockton.

All events are open to the public.

The nine San Joaquin County high schools participating are Escalon High, ABLE Charter High School, Merrill F. West High, Tracy High, Venture Academy, Stockton Early College Academy, Pacific Law Academy, Lincoln High, and Langston Hughes Academy.

The fictitious case all teams will try is ‘People v Concha’ and is described by Mock Trial officials as the trial of Rae Concha, a senior at Rosewood High School. Concha faces two felony counts: Count One is second degree murder for the death of a fellow student Jason Johnson, and Count Two is possession for sale of a controlled substance.

Escalon students have been practicing a couple of nights a week for the competition, taking on the roles of prosecutors, defense attorneys, witnesses, defendants, bailiffs, and more. Mock Trial is an event coordinated through the San Joaquin County Office of Education and the Escalon team has participated for the last several years.

San Joaquin County Office of Education (SJCOE) provides educational leadership, resources, and services to support schools throughout the county. For more information, visit www.sjcoe.org.