2024 Idaho High School Mock Trial Competition by Carey A. Shoufler

May 2, 2024 by ccarns

by Carey A. Shoufler

The Idaho Law Foundation’s Law Related Education Program hosted its annual High School Mock Trial State Championship from Wednesday to Friday, March 13 to 15. This year, students explored a civil case that centered on an allegation of wrongful death brought by the estate of a person who died while participating in an extreme obstacle course race.

For the 2024 competition, 352 high school students from 32 teams registered to participate in the mock trial competition. 186 teachers, judges, attorneys, and other community leaders donated their time to serve as coaches, advisors, judges, and competition staff.

This year, for the first time, we increased the number of teams advancing to state from 12 to 16, from regional competitions held in Pocatello, Lewiston, and Boise. These teams participated in four rounds of competition on Wednesday and Thursday at the Ada County Courthouse with the top two teams facing off for the state championship at the Idaho Supreme Court on Friday morning. The following schools participated in Idaho’s state tournament:

The Ambrose School (Meridian, two teams)
Boise High School
Capital High School (Boise)
Centennial High School (Meridian)
Lewiston High School
Liberty Charter School (Nampa, two teams)
The Logos School (Moscow, two teams)
Mountain Home High School (two teams)
Pocatello High School
Renaissance High School (Meridian)
Timberline High School (Boise)
Troy High School

The following teams placed in the top five for Idaho’s state tournament:

2024 State Champion: The Ambrose School (A Team)

State Runner Up: Logos School (A Team)

Third Place: Boise High School

Fourth Place: Capital High School

Fifth Place: Troy High School

Mock trial team members who played roles as attorneys and witnesses had the opportunity to be recognized for individual awards. For each trial through four rounds of competition, each judge had the opportunity to select the students they believed gave the best performances for the trial. The top witnesses and attorneys for the 2024 competition include:

Top 12 Attorneys:

Delaney Blankinsop (Boise High)

Samara Coleman (Ambrose)

Emily von Drakk (Ambrose)

David Henreckson (Logos)

Bridget Kelley (Timberline)

Jackson Long (Liberty Charter)

Nick Mann (Mountain Home)

Fiona Michael (Boise High)

Tadman Nettles (Centennial)

Jaxon Pierce (Capital)

Clive Miller (Logos)

Kyleigh Rohrs (Mountain Home)

Top 10 Witnesses:

Fiona Bothwell (Ambrose)

Jack Cornell (Centennial)

Ava Ginn (Logos)

Ada Hunt (Capital)

Alex Kuyper (Pocatello)

Tabitha Miller (Logos)

Molly Montgomery (Boise)

Josh Nelson (Troy)

Audrie Seamons (Timberline)

Eva Steele (Lewiston)

As part of the state competition, Idaho’s Mock Trial Program, in partnership with the Professionalism & Ethics Section, developed the Civility & Ethics Award, created to highlight the importance of civility and professionalism among teams participating in mock trial. During the state competitions teams observe and interact with each other and submit their nomination for the award. For 2024, Lewiston High School was chosen by the other teams as the recipient of this year’s award.

Idaho’s mock trial program also hosts a Courtroom Artist Contest as part of the program. In 2024, 12 courtroom artists participated in the contest, the most artists we’ve had in a season. Artists observed trials and submitted sketches that depict courtroom scenes. The top three entries for 2024 were:

First Place: Daily Adams, Timberline High School

Second Place: Emma Meyers, Renaissance High School

Third Place: Vanessa Morales, Mountain Home High School

The Ambrose School will represent Idaho at the National High School Mock Trial Championship in May in Wilmington, Delaware and Daily Adams will represent Idaho in the National Courtroom Artist Contest.

The Idaho Law Foundation’s Law Related Education Program would like to thank the sponsors and volunteers who helped during the 2024 mock trial season. We couldn’t do our important work without your support.

Plans will soon begin for the 2025 mock trial season. For more information about how to get involved with the mock trial program, visit idahomocktrial.org or contact Carey Shoufler, Idaho Law Foundation Law Related Education Director, at cshoufler@isb.idaho.gov.

Carey A. Shoufler

For 30 years, Carey A. Shoufler has worked in education and communication in an array of settings. In her current role, Carey has spent the last 17 years working as the Law Related Education Director for the Idaho Law Foundation. Carey utilizes her experience as an educator to provide leadership and management for a statewide civic education program. She obtained her bachelor’s degrees in English Literature from Mills College in Oakland, California and her master’s degree in Instructional Design from Boise State University. A native Idahoan, Carey returned to Boise in 1999 after working for 13 years as a teacher and educational administrator in Boston. When not working, Carey likes to walk her dogs, knit, read, bake pies, and spend time with her grandchildren.