04/21/2025

Middle School Students Pilgrimage Back in Time for Annual Mock Trial Showcase

COLUMBUS (April 21, 2025) - Over 500 Ohio middle school students will bring a popular middle school book to life at the Ohio Center for Law-Related Education’s (OCLRE) annual Middle School Mock Trial Showcase on April 24, April 25 and May 9 at the Thomas J. Moyer Ohio Judicial Center in Columbus.

OCLRE middle school mock trials are crafted from literature commonly taught in middle school classrooms. This year’s case is based on Elizabeth George Speare’s classic, The Witch of Blackbird Pond. The 2025 State Showcase piece is set in 1687 colonial Connecticut, a time when Puritanical beliefs were the dominant way of life. Kit Tyler is a 16-year-old orphan who relocates from the island of Barbados to the community of Wethersfield and befriends Hannah Tupper, an outsider of the village. After a mysterious illness claims the lives of many Wethersfield children, the distraught townspeople cast blame upon Kit and Hannah, accusing them of practicing witchcraft. When the illness does not respond to traditional remedies, the townspeople decide to act, which results in Hannah Tupper’s home being burned to the ground and Hannah narrowly escaping the colony with her life. After some time has passed, and her friend Kit Tyler has been tried and acquitted of witchcraft, Hannah returns to Wethersfield seeking justice. As a result, the Connecticut Colony presses charges of attempted murder, arson and criminal mischief against the individuals suspected of leading an angry mob to Hannah’s home.

With the help of teachers and attorneys, students learn about the legal system and develop reading, research, writing and public speaking skills. Students must consider both sides of the case, as they will argue as both the prosecution and defense before a panel of volunteers who evaluate their performance.

Teams from the following schools will participate in the state showcase: Belpre Middle School (Washington County), Bethany School (Hamilton County), Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy (Hamilton County), Cornerstone Academy (Franklin County), Danville Middle School (Knox County), Dominion Middle School (Franklin County), Garfield Middle School (Cuyahoga County), Genoa Middle School (Delaware County), Harding Middle School (Cuyahoga County), Heritage Middle School (Delaware County), Indian Hill Middle School (Hamilton County), Jackson Memorial Middle School (Stark County), Kenston High School (Geauga County), Langston Middle School (Lorain County), Laurel School (Cuyahoga County), Lebanon Christian Middle School (Warren County), Menlo Park Academy (Cuyahoga County), Notre Dame Middle School (Geauga County), Otsego Middle School (Wood County), Perrysburg Junior High School (Wood County), Reading Community Middle School (Hamilton County), Seton Catholic School (Summit County), Shaker Heights Middle School (Cuyahoga County), St. Hilary School (Summit County), St. Matthew the Apostle (Franklin County), Walnut Springs Middle School (Franklin County), Wheelersburg Middle School (Scioto County) and Woodward Park Middle School (Franklin County).  

OCLRE is a non-profit, nonpartisan organization whose mission is to improve society by developing citizens empowered with an understanding of our democratic system. OCLRE is sponsored by the Supreme Court of Ohio, Ohio Attorney General, Ohio State Bar Association and the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio Foundation. Middle School Mock Trial is additionally funded, in part, by the Ohio State Bar Foundation. For more information, please visit www.oclre.org.

###