Two Owasso High School mock trial teams, Team Quadstone and Team Heisenberg, will compete to determine the winner of the Oklahoma High School Mock Trial competition on Tuesday, March 5. The final round will begin at 5 p.m. in the Page Belcher Federal Building, 333 W. 4th Street, in Tulsa. The public is invited to attend.
“This is the second year in a row for two Owasso teams to face off for the state championship,” said OBA Mock Trial Coordinator Judy Spencer. “Last year was the first time ever in program history for the same school to compete in the finals.”
The two teams have advanced through a series of rounds that started with a field of 42 teams representing 27 schools across the state. Owasso had five teams compete, and competition began in late January. The Oklahoma champion will compete in the national competition in Athens, Georgia, in May.
This year’s case involves a civil action, brought by Jessie Lannister, the parent of the deceased Hannah Lannister, against defendant Kai Connely. Connely is accused of intentional infliction of emotional distress based on actions and the death of high school student Hannah Lannister. The basis of the fact pattern lies with high school bullying and harassment. The primary issue in this case is whether Connely is civilly responsible for Lannister’s death.
The competition involves teams of students taking on the roles of attorneys and defendants. The “trials” are heard by a judge and attorneys in a courtroom setting where individual and team performances are evaluated.
Team Quadstone is coached by teacher Kathy Rutherford and legal advisors Judge Daman Cantrell and attorney Ken Underwood. Team members are Jesse Anderson, Hayley Campbell, Melody Carney, Kelli Casteel, Emma Donohue, Avery Hendel, Ciara Locker, Maggie Murphy and Cole Wyrick.
Team Heisenberg is coached by teacher Kathy Rutherford and attorney Deirdre O. Dexter. Team members are Emily Carr, Preston Dunbar, Maggie Hazelrigg, Sam Lee, Ronan Locker, Morgan Meyers, Kennedy Patterson, Logan Schofield and Katy Turner.
Retired Judge Edward Cunningham will serve as presiding judge during the competition finals. Scoring judges will be Judge Shon Erwin, Judge Dana Rasure, Judge Paul Cleary, Judge Jane Wiseman and Judge Jodi Jayne.
The Mock Trial Program is sponsored and funded by the Oklahoma Bar Foundation and the Oklahoma Bar Association Young Lawyers Division. Over 400 judges and attorneys volunteered their time to work with mock trial teams as coaches and to conduct the competitions.
The Oklahoma Bar Foundation, through its grants and awards program, allocates funds to nonprofit agencies and programs like mock trial. The mission of the foundation is to ensure justice is possible for all Oklahomans through the promotion of law, education and access to justice. The 18,000-member Oklahoma Bar Association, headquartered in Oklahoma City, was created by the Oklahoma Supreme Court to advance the administration of justice and to foster and maintain learning, integrity, competence, public service and high standards of conduct among Oklahoma’s legal community.