Students from Springfield High School celebrate their victory with Judge William A. Klatt of the Tenth District Court of Appeals.

Students from Springfield High School celebrate their victory with Judge William A. Klatt of the Tenth District Court of Appeals.

The second annual high school Moot Court Competition hosted by the Ohio Center for Law-Related Education was held on May 19 at Capital University Law School and the Thomas J. Moyer Ohio Judicial Center.

Students appeared before a panel of judges and attorneys, and took on the role of appellate attorneys to argue both sides of an original case. Springfield High School was named the winner of the competition with Lake County’s Gilmour Academy in second place.

This year’s case asked students to consider the petition of fictitious appellant Samuel Bennett Fields, a member of garage band named “Don’t Tread.” The band’s message is distinctly anti-government and its lyrics have been the cause of controversy in the community. Students weighed the constitutionality of gang enhancement statutes, as two members of the band were convicted of criminal activity in support of an anti-government militia.

More than 100 students representing the following schools from across the state participated: Archbishop Hoban High School (Summit County); Benedictine High School (Cuyahoga County); Danville High School (Holmes County); Gilmour Academy (Lake County); Lake High School (Stark County); Marysville High School (Union County); Perkins Local High School (Erie County); Pleasant High School (Marion County); Reading High School (Hamilton County); Springfield High School (Clark County); St. Frances DeSales High School (Franklin County); Sycamore High School (Hamilton County); Thomas Worthington High School (Franklin County); Upper Arlington High School (Franklin County); Van Wert High School (Van Wert County); and Village Academy (Delaware County).

The Ohio Center for Law-Related Education (OCLRE) is a non-profit whose goal is to improve society by developing citizens empowered with an understanding of our democratic system. OCLRE is sponsored by the Supreme Court of Ohio, Ohio Attorney General’s Office, Ohio State Bar Association, and the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio Foundation. The Moot Court program is funded by a grant from the Ohio State Bar Foundation.