Friday, November 4, 2011

SMU’s first mock trial labeled a success

Saint Mary’s held its historic first Mock Trial on Oct. 27. The event was sponsored by the Business and Social Sciences departments.

Student “attorneys” represented the plaintiff and the defendant in a hotly contested case in which the plaintiff alleged that the defendant served alcohol at a party to a student who was drunk and was therefore responsible when the student crashed into the plaintiff’s car, injuring him.

The plaintiff was represented by Anna Sonday, Loren Galloway, and Morgan Carlson. The defendant was represented by Colin Norris, Marty Purintun, and Andrew Seifert. The Department of Theatre and Dance contributed greatly to the success of the event: the witnesses were expertly played by Bryan Moore, Jacob Rivet, Tom Conry, and Alex Green. Alex Akers and Taylor Marshall-Miernicki helped to design the set for the trial. Nancy Wiltgen, Development, played the role of judge and also gave some advice to the attorneys after the case was over, drawing on her more than 20 years of experience as an attorney in a prominent Minneapolis law firm.

The event was well attended and included a reception afterwards. The success of the event insures that it will become an annual event at Saint Mary’s. The entire Mock Trial can be viewed online at https://tegr.it/y/6qu9.