by Richard Prior
Staff Writer
The three days of testimony ended last Wednesday, but the jury is still out.
Did a doctor willfully disregard provisions in a state’s Aid in Dying Act and coerce his patient into taking his own life?
Did he neglect to give his patient a last opportunity to change his mind, perhaps in hopes of getting some cash out of the dead millionaire’s estate?
And what about the millionaire’s son, a failed novelist and university professor who fell into disgrace by casting an inappropriate eye on a particular student body?
Did he, perhaps, coerce his father into taking a lethal dose of morphine — again, so that he might take his chunk out of the estate being left behind?
Who knows?
This was no ordinary case, and the verdict has less to do with the fate of the defendant than with the performance of the attorneys and witnesses.
Students from Andrew Jackson, Fletcher and Wolfson high schools locked horns in mock trials last week over the fictitious Aid in Dying Act in the fictitious state of New Columbia.
The state had charged Dr. Chris Jenkins with manslaughter for coercing Steven Cole, his patient with incurable cancer, into taking his own life. Prosecutors also alleged that Jenkins had not given his patient the required last-second chance to back out, even as he appeared to be wavering.
There were plenty of facts and subtle twists to challenge the most seasoned attorneys. The high school students were equal to the challenge.
“You all did a wonderful job,” said attorney Patrick Earley, who served as one of the jurors. “It took a lot of guts to go forward with this.”
“I’ve seen law students not do as well as you did,” attorney Alison Emery told the students from Jackson and Wolfson Wednesday night.
Each school sent three “attorneys” and three “witnesses” to the trials, which were held Monday through Wednesday evening in the Duval County Courthouse. The teams were required to argue defense and prosecution positions in the round-robin competition. Each school sat out one of the nights.
Teacher-coordinator Mary Jo Antone at Jackson tries to interest 10th-graders in the program “and bring them on for three years.”
Some of the witnesses and all three attorneys on this year’s team also competed last year. Five juniors and one sophomore comprise the team. The attorneys were Chere Young, Tamika Patterson and Heather Rusbuldt. The witnesses were Dylan Douglas and Elizabeth Bys. David Hall played the part of the defendant doctor.
“This year, we made them try out for their parts,” Antone said.
Most of the Wolfson students got on the team while taking the law class that teacher-coordinator Pam Basney teaches at her school.
“I’m always on the lookout for students who would be good in this kind of situation,” she said.
Only one of her students is considering a legal career, which Earley had told them would be “the most ethical and noble job you’ll ever have.”
“Most of them aren’t real sure about careers,” said Basney. “While they love the law almost as a hobby, that’s not what they aspire to. That doesn’t mean this kind of experience won’t serve them in whatever occupation will be their life’s work.”
The members of the Wolfson team were Austin Howell, Tristan Hodgins, Seth Mollitt, Dustin Hammerstand, Kyle Hodgins and Katie Howell.
Basney applauded the work of the attorneys and judges who made the competition possible.
“The students put a lot of effort into their preparation,” she said at the finale Wednesday night. “We appreciate all the jurors and the judge taking the competition seriously.”
She also thanked Circuit Court Judge Henry E. Davis for overseeing the proceedings the last two nights.
“That’s certainly been over and above the call of duty for you,” she said.
County Court Judge Pauline Drayton-Harris was the judge for the opening session.
The other jurors, all attorneys, were Cindy Coats, Pam Bower and Melina Buncome-Williams.
The jurors also were the scoring judges, critiquing the students’ performances on a scale of one to 10. The presiding judges will decide which side presented the better argument. Ragsdale will total the scores and announce the results this week, possibly as early as today.
Awards will be presented to best school, most effective attorney and most effective witness. Winners will also be invited to the Law Day Luncheon on May 10, which will feature Judge Kenneth Starr as guest speaker.
The competition was organized by Lois Ragsdale, an attorney with the Public Defender’s office.
“We definitely want to give credit to Lois Ragsdale and the bar for their hanging in there and putting this on,” said Antone. “Especially Lois. She had to endure three trials.”