The City of Irving’s Teen Court program placed fourth at the Texas Teen Court Mock Trial Competition in Arlington on March 23.
Their performance signifies the highest place ever achieved by a team representing Irving’s program. The team, led by Juvenile Case Manager, Rachel Castro, included Rahma Shardow (Irving High School Junior), Rishi Dasari (Coppell High School Senior), and Neel Mavalli (Coppell High School Sophomore).
The competition allows students to showcase their in-depth knowledge of the legal system, boost critical thinking abilities, foster teamwork, and improve public speaking skills.
Competition organizers provide teams with the details of a specific case. A panel of practicing judges and attorneys watch as teams study the case, research relevant laws and prepare arguments.
Then during three trial rounds, each team presents both the prosecution’s perspective and the defense’s perspective. Students step into various roles, including attorneys, witnesses, and defendants. Panel members score teams on performance, legal knowledge, presentation skills, and their ability to handle objections and unexpected developments. The team with the highest overall score wins.
The Irving Teen Court program continues to boast the reputation as a model program across the state, underscoring Irving’s ongoing commitment to provide meaningful and value-enriching opportunities for youth development.
The program offers a great opportunity for young people to explore the legal field, and for the community to engage with teens in a meaningful way. For more information about Irving’s Teen Court program visit, https://www.cityofirving.org/427/Teen-Court.
