SXU Mock Trial team participates in its first American Mock Trial Association regional tournament

SXU to offer new Mock Trial course as part of Pre-Law Program for Fall 2012

Chicago (April 26, 2012) Saint Xavier University's first Mock Trial Team recently competed in its inaugural regional tournament through the American Mock Trial Association (AMTA), as part of the University's launch of its new Pre-Law program. SXU will offer a three-credit hour course, POLSC 260: Mock Trial I, during the Fall, 2012 semester.

“This pre-law initiative is unlike anything SXU has ever done before,” said SXU President Christine Wiseman, J.D. “We are so appreciative of our volunteer coaches and judges who took time out of their busy schedules to help SXU students hone their skills in the courtroom.”

The team held a dress rehearsal dress rehearsal for a murder/DUI case in early February on campus to prepare for the tournament. The mock trial gave students on the team an opportunity to play the role of defense attorney and prosecutor as well as witnesses in the trial. All the students did an excellent job representing SXU at this year's regional tournament, and the competition's judges were shocked to learn this was SXU's first team competition! The students on the team also received compliments on how well they conducted themselves both in and out of the courtroom.

More than 190 universities throughout the country take part in the American Mock Trial Association’s tournaments. Patrick J. Enright, an attorney at O’Rourke, Hogan, Fowler & Dwyer, and Dan Maloney, Assistant State's Attorney for the Cook County State's Attorney's Office, are the team's coaches. Three judges graciously agreed to volunteer their time during the mock trial on campus: The Hon. Brian Flaherty, a felony courtroom judge in the Cook County Circuit Court's Sixth Municipal District. He is a former Assistant Public Defender for the Cook County Public Defender's Office and a former attorney for the Cook County Sheriff's Department; The Hon. Kathy Panozzo, a misdemeanor criminal courtroom judge in the Cook County Circuit Court's Sixth Municipal District and a former Cook County Assistant State's Attorney in the Gang Crimes Unit; and Federal Bureau of Investigation Agent Mike Brown.

“These mock trials are great opportunities for young students to learn the federal rules of evidence, how to submit evidence as well as to understand the various roles and responsibilities of trial lawyers,” Enright said. “It’s great to see the dedication of the SXU students."

For more information, please contact Pre-Law Program Director Prof. Nan-Nan Lee at prelaw@sxu.edu or visit www.sxu.edu, keyword: pre-law.

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Media Contact:
Karla Thomas, Executive Director of Media Relations
(773) 298-3937 or kthomas@sxu.edu