Did the celebrity newscaster, in the prime of her career, murder her cocaine-addicted son or did she shoot him in self-defense?
The Dartmouth College Mock Trial Society, in only its second year of existence, will send two teams to Manchester Community College in Hartford, Conn., this weekend to argue this case at a regional mock trial tournament.
If the Dartmouth team matches last year's top-four finish, it will travel to Des Moines, Iowa, in April to compete in the American Mock Trial Association's National Championship Tournament.
Last year's team took the "Best New School Award" at the 1997 National Competition.
"Our performance last year put Dartmouth on the mock trial map," said co-Captain and Mock Trial Attorney Dave Gacioch '00.
This year's "student-founded, -led and -directed" team consists of 16 undergraduates who collaborate to prepare testimony, arguments and witness examinations for a fabricated case they will argue against other colleges at tournaments, he said.
The Mock Trial Society will argue the case four times during this weekend's two-day competition, and each trial can last for up to three hours, co-Captain and Mock Trial Attorney Rosanna Taormina '99 said.
She said members will compete against 20 teams from schools including Brown, Yale, Cornell and Howard Universities.
"We will have almost every top team at the Manchester tournament," Taormina said.
"Powerhouse" mock trial teams generally have an attorney coach, and some schools, such as University of Maryland, even offer Mock Trial Competition as a yearlong course. The Dartmouth Mock Trial Society, however, is not recognized by the College, does not receive funding and has no coach, she said.
Taormina said that, despite these setbacks, "the team has a lot of spontaneity and raw talent which are important in a competition like this because lawyers need to be able to think quickly on their feet."
The Society will field two eight-member teams, each consisting of three lawyers and five witnesses. They received a background of facts about the case in early January, including descriptions of the witnesses, affidavits, evidence and a set of pertinent laws that apply to the case, she said.
Taormina said the lawyers and witnesses used this background information to create a working script, to draw up witness testimony, to plan opening arguments and summations and to analyze the case.
Because they may be asked to serve as either the defense or the prosecution at the competition, the Society worked up arguments for each side of the case, Gacioch said.
" Mock Trial is like a citrus fruit. It is divided into many different, complex sections," said Lucas Braun '00, whose character, a Mock Trial star witness, illustrates children's book and is the self-proclaimed ruler of the world.
One of the Dartmouth team's strengths is witness performance. Last year Spiros Maliagros '98 won an All-American Witness award for his performance in the role of Sam Scully, sleazy sports agent and defense witness.
The competitions are judged by local lawyers, one of whom serves as the courtroom judge, Taormina said.
The judges do not appreciate teams who "try to pull off something flashy" and one of their most common complaints is that "some teams watch too much television," she said.
The mock trial lawyers are judged on their arguments and witness examinations. Witnesses, however, are generally scored on performance and character. A team does not have to win the trial to win the competition, Taormina said.
Although there are many Government majors in the Society, members stressed that it is not just a haven for future lawyers. Mock trial aficionados include English and Spanish majors, and even a Studio Art major, Gacioch said.
Society newcomers, Dean Krishna '01 and Collin O'Mara '01, said mock trial competition at the collegiate level is more intense than high school competition. Krishna compared the Society to an internship, since "it gives students a chance to experience court room action firsthand."
The Mock Trial Society is currently trying to secure funding from Committee on Student Organizations to cover the costs of tournament expenses. Last year, they had to raise $6,000 from outside sources to travel to the National Championship, Gacioch said.
