Juvenile Justice

Photograph by Martha Stewart

Twice a year, Boston’s John Joseph Moakley United States Courthouse fills with the voices of schoolchildren arguing criminal and civil legal cases before state and federal judges and a jury. The mock trials are the culmination of a 10-week legal apprenticeship, in which students learn how the justice system works from private and government lawyers who donate their time.

Each year about 250 Boston public-school students ages 9 to 14 participate in the after-school program, which is run by Discovering Justice: The James D. St. Clair Court Education Project in partnership with Citizen Schools, a charity that provides students with after-school activities and summer programs.

Through the program, students learn about the role of the judge and jury in a trial, as well as what it means to be innocent until proven guilty. The lawyers help hone the students’ public-speaking skills and teach them how to cross-examine a witness and write opening and closing arguments. Students meet with a judge before the mock trial to ask questions, and following the trial the judge offers feedback on student performances.

Dermot Luddy, deputy director of Discovering Justice, says the program provides a fun way for young people to learn about their duties as American citizens. “As a result, they will take their own civic responsibilities much more seriously as they grow up,” he says.

The apprenticeship program is one of five programs at Discovering Justice, a group started in 1998 to teach adults and children the role of the justice system in American democracy. Donations from corporations, foundations, and individuals support the charity’s $1-million budget.

Here, a student approaches the jury box during a patent case to point out similarities between two toy dinosaurs made by competing companies.