No mocking the student lawyers

The Hebrew Academy of the Five Towns and Rockaway High School’s Mock Trial team is off to an amazing start to its season with two wins. As the season gets underway, each team is assigned a case and each student is assigned different character parts.
Other students are designated as lawyers for either the prosecution or the defense. The team then creates questions for direct examination and cross-examination. Then, they question the witnesses. Both sides seek to get the better of each other. Based on the testimony of the witnesses of one side and the work of the lawyers, the judge decides who he thinks is guilty and not guilty, and which side wins the case. 
Arielle Zrihen, a junior who is a member of HAFTR’s Mock Trial team, said, “I really enjoy seeing firsthand how the legal system works. It incorporates acting, quick thinking, and actual learning of the law, which is really helpful in all other areas as well. I mostly like getting to go up on the stand and become a character.”
 In their first two matches, HAFTR defeated Great Neck North and Rambam. Opening statements were given by Josh Lederer in round one and Katie Glickman in the next round. Each of them did a fantastic job as they outlined the issue at hand, which was a civil case of “The Morningside Heights Booster Club vs. Casey Cheatham.” Ms. Cheatham is accused of stealing money from a fair designed to raise money to restore the extracurricular activities at a local high school. Elliot Fuchs gave the first closing statement, successfully arguing on behalf of Ms. Cheatham, and in the second round Jonathan Gliboff gave the closing statement, as he was able to persuade the judge that Ms. Cheatham did in fact take the money. 
Because HAFTR has won the first two matches, they will automatically advance in the competition. By the end of the competition, only one team will be qualified to continue onto the next round, leading to the state championship in Albany.
In previous years, HAFTR has done extremely well, making it all the way to the Elite Eight and Final Four. With the season going well due to the outstanding performances from many members of the team, HAFTR’s Mock Trial team expects to make it just as far and has very high hopes about winning the entire competition.