Press Release
DISTRICT ATTORNEY KATZ HOSTS ANNUAL MOCK TRIAL COMPETITION
Photo (from left to right): Stetson winners Juliana McCabe, Carmela Brazzale, Kristen Ballard, Marjorie Kammerlohr, Judge Michael Yavinsky, Chief Assistant District Attorney Jennifer Naiburg, Assistant District Attorney Courtney Finnerty (Director of Litigation Training), Executive Assistant District Attorneys Pishoy Yacoub (Supreme Trial Division), Shawn Clark (Major Crimes Division), Theresa Shanahan (Criminal Practice & Policy Division)
The Queens District Attorney’s Office hosted its 9th Annual Mock Trial Competition over the weekend, with Stetson University School of Law besting 17 other top-tier, nationally ranked law schools. New York Supreme and Criminal Court judges presided as law school students competed before senior prosecutors and members of the defense bar. The Stetson team’s victory marked the second year in a row that an all-female squad won the competition.
District Attorney Melinda Katz said: “For our democracy to thrive, it is incumbent upon all of us in the legal profession to cultivate, nurture and promote the kind of young talent we saw on display here the past few days. For their service and mentorship to the young legal scholars, I want to thank my colleagues in the judiciary and defense bar, as well as the prosecutors from my office who made this a memorable learning experience for the students. The participants’ energy, commitment and ability were exceptional and bode well for our future.”
The champion Stetson team of four women was comprised of Kristen Ballard, Carmela Brazzale, Marjorie Kammerlohr, and Juliana McCabe. St. John’s University School of Law finished second.
Participating Schools:
Brooklyn Law School
University of Buffalo School of Law
Campbell University Norman Adrian Wiggins School of Law
Chicago-Kent College of Law
CUNY School of Law
Drexel University Thomas R. Kline School of Law
Emory University School of Law
Fordham University School of Law
Hofstra University, Maurice A. Deane School of Law
New York Law School
New York University School of Law
Pace University, Elisabeth Haub School of Law
Quinnipiac University, School of Law
Rutgers School of Law
Seton Hall Law School
St. John’s University School of Law
University of South Dakota Knudson School of Law
University of St. Thomas School of Law
Stetson University College of Law
During the mock trial tournament, each team of second-year law students studied a fact pattern and prepared a mock trial for the competition which began on Friday evening March 8. The competition consisted of two preliminary rounds, a blind quarterfinals, semi-finals and a final round. Judges from Queens and Brooklyn counties volunteered to preside, along with seasoned prosecutors and defense attorneys who acted as evaluators and bailiffs. Participants received feedback each round and a culminating score from evaluators.
Sponsored by the Queens District Attorney’s Office, the mock trial competition was supervised by Senior Assistant District Attorney Courtney Finnerty, Director of Litigation Training, with the assistance of Senior Assistant District Attorney Courtney Charles of the Homicide Bureau, Assistant District Attorneys Brian Hughes, Deputy Bureau Chief of the Special Victims Bureau, and Gabriel Mendoza, Assistant Deputy Bureau Chief of the Hate Crimes Bureau, under the overall supervision of Executive Assistant District Attorney for Supreme Court Trials Pishoy Yacoub.