The 21 teen prosecutors and defense lawyers from the Fayetteville-Manlius Mock Trial Team all prevailed today in the New York Statewide Mock Trial Tournament Finals held in the James T. Foley Federal Courthouse in Albany. With Supreme Court Justice Michael C. Lynch presiding over the 9 a.m. match between F-M and the team from the High School of American Studies at Lehman College, the Hornets were victorious.
In a phone conversation from a rest stop on the return trip home from the state capital, team coach and social studies teacher Joseph Worm said his students exceeded already high-held expectations. “They made it their mission to win mock trial state finals,” Worm said. “We wanted for them to perform the way we knew they could.”
The team from F-M received high marks for professionalism as they curbed all cross talking and whispering at counsel tables and kept their focus in front of them.
“They were glued to the proceedings at all times,” Worm said.
The Bronx team promised a challenge. Named this year by U.S. News & World Report as New York State’s top school, as well as 15th best in the nation, the 400 students of the High School of American Studies test into the humanities-centric public school and agree to study American history in chronological order. According to Worm, the team “really knew the Constitution and really knew the law.”
Maybe so, but the Hornets’ knowledge of procedure and their familiarity with the finer points of the fictitious case People v. Kelly Roberts led to their mock trial triumph.
“Our witnesses are what set us apart from other teams,” Worm said. “They don’t just play the part, they become the character.”
The Hornet legal counsel also recognized when their opponents were too loose with case findings and were commended by Justice Lynch, post proceeding, for their on-target objections to invention of facts.
“We were just so proud. After all the hours and hours and hours they put in, this is complete validation of their hard work,” Worm said.
The following students took part in the state championship for F-M: Payton Brewer, Mathieson Byer, Sophia Byer, Patrice Calancie, Matthew Crovella, Song Tao Guo, Connor Hargrove, David Huangs, Julie Howard, John Hrbac, Lauren Koss, Jordan Krouse, Nathan Montgomery, Zain Nichols, Grant Olick-Sutphen, Sarah Percoski, Sucheer Rao, Tyler VanBeveren, Richard Wang, Agatha Woodbury and Shawn Wu.
The county, regional and, now, state champions were helped this year by their coach, social studies teacher Worm and were advised by OCBA member Danielle M. Fogel, Esq., a partner at the Sugarman Law Firm.
“The kids are so excited,” Fogel wrote in an email to OCBA minutes after the win. “Their performance was amazing.”
