Awards ceremony acknowledges blue ribbon recipients and internships with Riverside County Public Defender’s Office, Riverside County District Attorney’s Office, and the Riverside County Superior Court following fourth round of student competition.
RIVERSIDE – After four rounds of competition, legal teams from eight local high schools have advanced to the “Elite Eight” of the 41st Annual Riverside County Mock Trial Competition to be held on Thursday, February 16, 2023, at 6 p.m. at the Riverside Hall of Justice (4100 Main Street, Riverside). The semi-finals will be held on Tuesday, February 21, and the 2023 champion will be named after the final round on Thursday, February 23, 2023. The final round will take place at 6 p.m. at the Riverside Historic Courthouse (4050 Main Street, Riverside).
Prosecution
|
vs. |
Defense |
Great Oak HS |
vs. |
Martin Luther King HS |
Ramona HS |
vs. |
Hemet HS |
Poly HS |
vs. |
Notre Dame HS |
Santiago HS |
vs. |
Murrieta Valley HS |
Additionally, more than a dozen students were honored for top performances with blue ribbons and prestigious internships in local legal organizations after the fourth round of competition on Saturday, February 11.
2023 Riverside County Mock Trial Photo Gallery
This year’s case, People vs. Franks, revolves around the trial of Jordan Franks, a young actor who finished a run of performances of the Shakespeare-adaptation Macbeth at Sea on the cruise ship Heart of the Ocean. Franks is charged with robbery and battery of Franks’ fellow actor, Billie Scher. The alleged crime is the subject of the fictional court case that nearly 400 students from high schools in Riverside County have been arguing during multiple rounds of competition in Indio, Murrieta, and Riverside courtrooms since January 26, 2023.
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, clerks, and more. For the first time in the history of Riverside County Mock Trial, the role of courtroom artists has been integrated into the competition.
In 2022, first-time winner, Notre Dame High School, defeated Poly High School (Riverside USD). In 2023, the winning team will represent the county at the California Mock Trial competition to be hosted in Los Angeles, on March 17-19, 2023. The National Mock Trial Competition will be held on May 18-20, 2023, in Little Rock, Arkansas.
2023 Riverside County Mock Trial Competition
BLUE RIBBON AWARD RECIPIENTS
Outstanding Courtroom Artist
1st Place – Gold Medal: Edith Cervantes, Ramona High School
Honorable Mention – Rafael Guzman, Palo Verde High School
Honorable Mention – Jay Martinez, Hemet High School
Honorable Mention – Briana Velazquez, Temecula Valley High School
Outstanding Bailiff
1st Place – Gold Medal: Brooklynn Batlle, Hemet High School
2nd Place – Silver Medal: Aubrey Hernandez, Notre Dame High School
3rd Place – Bronze Medal: Damien Milton, Great Oak High School
Outstanding Clerk
1st Place – Gold Medal: Javier Orozco Ceballo, Patriot High School
2nd Place – Silver Medal: Xavier Felix, Notre Dame High School
3rd Place – Bronze Medal: Emily Tucker, Palm Desert High School
Outstanding Defense Pretrial Motion Attorney
1st Place – Gold Medal: Kierstyn Cohen*, John W. North High School
2nd Place – Silver Medal: Gretchen Reyes, Notre Dame High School
3rd Place – Bronze Medal: Jack Dickinson, Great Oak High School
* Winner of Riverside County Bar Foundation’s Honorable Douglas E. Weathers Scholarship
Outstanding Prosecution Pretrial Motion Attorney
1st Place – Gold Medal: Erika Salcedo*, Murrieta Valley High School
2nd Place – Silver Medal: Erick Jacobsen, Temecula Valley High School
3rd Place – Bronze Medal: Lorelei Tang, Santiago High School
* Winner of Riverside County Bar Foundation’s Honorable Douglas E. Weathers Scholarship
Outstanding Prosecution Witnesses
Witness: Bill Scher
1st Place – Gold Medal: Lucas Maduena, Indio High School
2nd Place – Silver Medal: Ethan Flores, Patriot High School
3rd Place – Bronze Medal: Taylor Graham, La Quinta High School
Witness: Cleo Shafer
1st Place – Gold Medal: Marco Ramirez, Valley View High School
2nd Place – Silver Medal: Destiny Casas, Indio High School
2nd Place – Silver Medal: Fatima Garcia, Patriot High School
Witness: Ari Kouch
1st Place – Gold Medal: Hannah Van Patten, La Quinta High School
2nd Place – Silver Medal: Eva Prince, Poly High School
3rd Place – Bronze Medal: Jonathan Pereschini, Chaparral High School
Witness: Dylan Mavis
1st Place – Gold Medal: Ashley De Gennaro, Notre Dame High School
2nd Place – Silver Medal: Connor Sousa, Martin Luther King High School
3rd Place – Bronze Medal: Anna Pham, Murrieta Valley High School
Outstanding Defense Witnesses
Defendant: Jordan Franks
1st Place – Gold Medal: Marco Ramirez, Valley View High School
2nd Place – Silver Medal: Elizabeth Ayers, Heritage High School
3rd Place – Bronze Medal: Ashley Reyes Balcorta, Temecula Valley High School
Witness: Jade Marquez
1st Place – Gold Medal: Mackenzie Watkins, Poly High School
2nd Place – Silver Medal: Katelynn Phan, Valley View High School
3rd Place – Bronze Medal: Daniel Ortega, Great Oak High School
Witness: Karter Lucky
1st Place – Gold Medal: Gavin Stewart, Hemet High School
2nd Place – Silver Medal: Amy Moreno, Palo Verde High School
3rd Place – Bronze Medal: Bree Savage, Great Oak High School
Witness: Ezra Weintraub
1st Place – Gold Medal: Rafael Guzman, Palo Verde High School
2nd Place – Silver Medal: Zoe Sullivan Douglass, Chaparral High School
3rd Place – Bronze Medal: Reese Cash, Martin Luther King High School
Outstanding Prosecution Attorneys
Delaney Donahue, Martin Luther King High School
Annabelle Lindwall, Poly High School
Maggie Orelana**, Santiago High School
** Winner of summer internship in District Attorney’s Office and Riverside County Bar Foundation’s Honorable Douglas E. Weathers Scholarship
Outstanding Defense Attorneys
Ashley De Gennaro, Notre Dame High School
Kaylee Magno, Martin Luther King High School
Reyshilyn Villegas***, Valley View High School
*** Winner of summer internship with the Public Defender’s Office and Riverside County Bar Foundation’s Honorable Douglas E. Weathers Scholarship
For a complete listing of the schedules and locations for all rounds of the competition, visit www.rcoe.us/student-events/mock-trial.
The Riverside County Mock Trial is sponsored by the Riverside County Office of Education (RCOE), the Riverside County Bar Association (RCBA), and the Riverside County Superior Courts, in cooperation with the Constitutional Rights Foundation (CRF). Since 1983, more than 13,500 Riverside County students have participated in Mock Trial.