By Johnny Jackson
jjackson@henryherald.com

Elijah Staggers bore down on his witness, prodding to find the truth behind an alleged crime. His witness, fellow Ola High School senior, Hunter Bishop, seemed equally determined to get his viewpoint across.

Members of the school’s mock trial team have been heavily focused on the case at hand for the past two weeks, preparing for the Georgia Mock Trial Competition this weekend at the Gwinnett Justice and Administration Center, in Lawrenceville.

The 16-member team successfully defended its first regional mock trial title from 2009, by placing first in the High School Mock Trial Region 12 Champion last month at the Henry County Judicial Center and Courthouse, in McDonough.

Last year, the team competed in the state meet for a chance to contend for the National High School Mock Trial Championship title, but didn’t make it to the nationals.

“We may have burned out a little bit last year,” said Tommy Thompson, Ola’s team coach. “This year, we approached it a little differently, and gave the students a little time off. I think it was good to give them a mental break.”

Thompson, also an assistant principal at Ola, said he believes the students are prepared to compete at the state level, based on various mock trial practice sessions they have committed to all school year. “The competition at state is very tough, and there is a lot of experience, and a lot of quality teams there,” he said. “But these students have been going pretty hard since September, and on this particular case, since mid-November.”

Winners from this year’s state competition will compete against 42 other state championship teams, May 5-9, in a national mock trial event hosted by the Pennsylvania Bar Association in Philadelphia.

Local attorneys — William White, Sandi Rivers, Lindsay Hodgson, Brian Gardiner, and Nicole Holcomb — volunteer to coach the teams, putting in long hours studying cases and fine-tuning courtroom techniques. Students are also asked to rely heavily on their critical-thinking skills, according to Thompson.

“The primary skills that mock trial team teaches is — number one — public speaking ... critical thinking, and it also teaches a little bit about how the judicial system works,” said Thompson, who added there are a few students on Ola’s team interested in pursuing careers in law and law enforcement.

Sandi Rivers, an attorney of 14 years, has volunteered as a coach on Ola’s team since its inception four years ago, when the school opened in 2006. She helps teach the rules of evidence and courtroom procedure. “These are high school students with no legal training,” said Rivers, an assistant district attorney for Henry County. “It’s our job [as coaches] to help them understand the meaning of the law.”

Rivers said she plans to join the team at the state competition in Lawrenceville, beginning Saturday morning. “I want them to be as successful as they can be,” she said. “They’re incredible young people. They’re intelligent, articulate and seem as if they have a good understanding of the meaning of integrity. They’ll be leaders of Henry County.”

Six members of the now-seasoned mock trial team will head to state competition with several awards in tow. During last month’s regional competition, Jordan Hall, Matthew Kelley, and Hannah Tabrizi, each won outstanding witness awards.

Their teammates, Amber Stapleton, Elijah Staggers, and Ashley Thompson, each won awards as outstanding attorneys.

Other members of the team headed to the state competition are: Hunter Bishop, Chris Butler, Regan Corder, Elizabeth Dennard, Hunter Furnish, Kyle Lewis, Naasi Nixon, Brian Pogioli, Keri Wallis, and Jaquel Wilkes.