Nov 29, 2009 By Herald Standard Staff 3 min read

WAYNESBURG – On Monday and Wednesday, Waynesburg University’s criminal justice administration program will host mock pretrial hearings and mock trials in courtroom two of the Greene County Courthouse. Mock pretrials will be held from noon to 2 p.m., followed by mock trials from 2 to 5 p.m., both days. The university has offered students the interactive learning opportunity for 10 years. Like a real trial, Waynesburg University students have prepared opening and closing statements. Local judges preside over the trial and defense attorneys cross-examine the students.

“This is a valuable and unique capstone experience for our students. They will be arguing rules of evidence, testifying as police officers and expert witnesses, and making opening statements and closing arguments,” said Dana Baer, associate professor of criminal justice, chairwoman of the department of criminal justice and interim dean of undergraduate studies.

Baer said the experience, complete with actual judges and practicing defense attorneys, could not be more similar to “the real thing.”

“I don’t know of any other undergraduate program that provides this opportunity,” she said.

Twenty-one students will participate in the mock pretrial hearings and 31 students will participate in the mock trials.

The mock trials include multiple five-student teams and require those students to use knowledge, skills and experience from the last three years as students in the criminal justice administration program at Waynesburg University. The teams must prepare and try the prosecution’s case in a criminal trial. Students must coordinate with the entire group, rely on their teammates and use communication and leadership skills. Mock trials are the final exam in the law and evidence course (CRJ 406), which is required for seniors majoring in criminal justice, forensic science, forensic accounting, forensic chemistry and computer forensics.

The mock pretrial hearings challenge students to answer questions related to procedural policies and evidence they have collected through exams and projects throughout the semester. Mock pretrial hearings are the final project in the criminal procedure course, a junior-level class for majors. These hearings began three years ago as an introduction to the senior-level mock trials.

“This has worked amazingly well, as students get really excited about the prospect of the full trial after testifying at pretrial,” Baer said.

According to Baer, David DiCarlo, a criminal defense attorney practicing in Greene, Washington, Allegheny and Westmoreland counties and adjunct criminal justice administration instructor at Waynesburg University, has played a vital role in the quality and effectiveness of the mock trials.

“I’m always amazed by how the students embrace the mock trial project. By the end of the semester, many of these kids are putting 15 to 20 hours a week into this trial, and you’ll find them in the halls discussing the evidence or arguing court procedure just like their real-life counterparts,” DiCarlo said.

DiCarlo said not only do the students enjoy the experience but they grow into their roles and absorb the benefits.

“When they’ve finished this class, they’ve done it,” he said. “They’ve had a trial. Now they are ready to go out and start their career and do it for real.”

Judge Farley Toothman, Judge Thomas D. Gladden and Judge Lou Dayich will preside over the trials with attorneys Tom Jess, Linda Moore, Bob Brady and Leslie Ridge offering cross-examination. Trials include topics related to assault, burglary, DUI convictions, drug offenses, homicide, probation violation and robbery, among other topics.