NEW GLARUS — The New Glarus High School Mock Trial team will compete in Madison on Saturday, Feb. 9 in its sixteenth mock trial tournament. Students are responsible for mastering a manual with over 80 pages of rules and procedures, and 35 pages of witness statements, exhibits and legal standards before they compete against teams from across southern Wisconsin. They assume roles as either lawyers presenting the case and making arguments, or as witnesses who must make a convincing presentation of their facts. The witnesses are then cross examined by student attorneys from other teams before the panel of three judges decides on points which side has “won” that particular trial.

This year’s case is a criminal case of prosecution for first degree reckless homicide arising from an incident where a school operations manager, acting in his capacity as a school approved security person, shot and killed an unarmed student when the manager thought the student was reaching for a gun. Kelsey Grammar was the school manager, trained by the school to safely handle firearms and protect students in “active shooter” situations. One day Grammar heard what he thought was gunfire in the hallways. Grammar ran out and into the nearest classroom, which happened to be the Spanish classroom of Billie Jones. Grammar secured the classroom for safety, turning off the lights and telling the students to hide (although he didn’t lock the door). At that moment, Tim Riggens, a 17 year old student, opened the door and walked in. Kelsey recognized Riggens and when Riggens reached into his backpack, Grammar thought he was reaching for a gun and shot Riggens. Grammar is now being prosecuted in criminal court for their actions.

Note: The situation is entirely fictional and is not based on any actual events.

The prosecution lawyer team is Ben Copeland, Stacy Benoy and Ellawyn Fong. Defense lawyers are Tessa Sheridan, Heather Niceschwander and Anderson Justmann. 

Prosecution witnesses are: Billie Jones, played by Callista Lahey. Jones was the Spanish teacher whose class Grammar sought to protect. She didn’t care for Grammar’s politics or attitude toward troubled youth like Riggens. Is she biased in her testimony?

Payton Allanson, played by Jenna Anderson. Officer Allison was not only the officer charged with writing the school policy on guns in school and training Grammar, but also the investigating officer for the incident. Is she right that Grammar failed to follow her training for active shooter situations, or is she just defensive for herself?

Dana McCarthy, played by Merrick Fong. McCarthy was another student in the classroom when Grammar shot Riggens. He, too, heard the loud noise that Grammar thought was gunfire, but instead recognized it as just a blow up in the chemistry lab. Is his belief that Grammar shot too quickly objective, or more based on his sympathy for Riggens and dislike of Grammar?

Defendant’s witnesses are: Kelsey Grammar, played by Annalee Kaiser. Is Kelsey just the ardent second amendment protector of students’ lives she sees herself as, or is she really simply a trigger-happy gun enthusiast and wannabe hero, prejudiced against troubled youth like Tim Riggens?

Remington Mossberg, played by Michael Schieldt. This is the police and military experienced expert hired by the defense. Does he present a rational case for Grammar’s actions being reasonable, or is he just a paid shill?

Sam Smith, played by Lily Lounsbury and Ella Shaw. Smith was a co-student of Riggens. She did not like Riggens’ approach, and looked up to Grammar as a role model. Was she an objective witness to the shooting, or did she see things only with the bias of an admirer of Grammar?

German exchange student Luna Hakim is serving as time keeper and back up for team members as necessary.

The tournament will be all day Saturday, Feb. 9 at the Dane County Courthouse, 215 South Hamilton Street, Madison, and four versions of the trial will be presented. Trials are scheduled to start at 8 a.m., 10 a.m., 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. All guests are welcome. An exhibition performance will also be held in the high school library at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 30. 

The New Glarus Mock Trial team is coached by New Glarus High School teacher Lexa Speth, and attorneys Faun Phillipson and Dan Gartzke. The team is further supported by financial donations from the Green County Bar Association, the Bank of New Glarus and Sugar River Bank Branches, and the volunteer services of local judges Thomas Vale and Duane Jorgenson as well as attorney Daniel Bestul who donated a Sunday afternoon to hear our practice rounds.

The State Bar of Wisconsin has been running the Mock Trial program for over 30 years. Monroe’s own Rodney Kittleson was one of the original founders. In that time, many thousands of Wisconsin high school students have benefited from the rigors of preparing and trying realistic cases. It is part of the Bar’s public education program.