ON THE RISE
The team celebrates their
winning moment with Miranda
R. Baxendale, Adjunct
Instructor of Law and Melanie
K. Snyder, Esq., Professor of
Law. Members of Stevenson’s
Mock Trial A and B teams
are: Jaden Thornton ’21;
Messeret Sium ’21; Wesley
Schrum ’20 (captain); Danielle
Ebbighausen ’19 (captain);
Norman Greenwell ’20; Alexis
Holloway ’21; Eric Hammond
’19; Sabrina Clifford ‘21; Shelby
McCloskey ’19; Eric Williams
’22; Jenna Blevins ’22; Jackson
Mayo ’22; Apreah Smith ’22;
Marriah Boyd ’22; Nasiba
Sabirova ’21; Muskan Malhotra
’22; and Faith Bangs ’21.
Charm City Invitational Tournament, bringing
16 teams from universities including Johns
Hopkins, Princeton, Haverford, and American,
to Stevenson to compete.
The quality of the Charm City Invitational
RULES OF
ENGAGEMENT
What takes a Mock Trial team from good to great? Prac-
impressed officials from the American Mock Trial tice and knowing the rules.
Association. When the Mid-Atlantic Regionals season, the teams practice as a group at least twice per
needed a new home, the choice was obvious. In week and have individual or small-group practice sessions
2018, Stevenson University and UMBC co-hosted daily. First comes reading the case file: 157 pages of detail
the AMTA Regionals on Stevenson’s campus. about events, witnesses, and evidence. This is the play-
The tournament was such a success that SU was book for the trial.
During the competition
offered the 2019 hosting slot and will be hosting “Anything and everything is fair game,” says Legal
again in 2020. Stevenson’s facilities—the jewel Studies major Norman Greenwell. “Paying attention
of which is the Francis X. Pugh Courtroom— to and learning the small details can often make the
supportive campus community, and hospitality difference in winning a case.”
have been consistently cited as reasons that Stevenson’s team works together to analyze the case
coming to Stevenson’s tournament is a such a file and create their strategy. Dozens of combinations of
positive experience for participating teams. witnesses can be produced, and myriad lines of inquiry
Regionals typically draw about 28 teams, and
recent competitors at Stevenson have included
Columbia,
Fordham,
Wesleyan,
and argument can be made. Team members must be
prepared for anything.
Temple, The ability to read, analyze, listen, and act are at the
Villanova, and Rutgers. Hosting AMTA Regionals core of a successful Mock Trial performance. And, it
helped Stevenson grow its reputation in the Mock certainly is a performance. Timing, hand gestures, and use
Trial community, and in 2019 the team made it of the space are all important. “Everything you’re doing
to the “big leagues” by qualifying for ORCS. in the courtroom is purposeful,” says coach Miranda R.
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