Westlake Arguably the Best

By LISA FERNANDEZ

March 1, 1998 12 AM PT

SPECIAL TO THE TIMES

For the first time in the contest’s 15-year history, the pretend prosecutors and make-believe defense attorneys from Westlake High School on Saturday won Ventura County’s annual mock trial competition.

When the verdict was announced, members of the smartly dressed 20-member team dropped their briefcases and stormed to the front of the Ventura County Hall of Justice cafeteria to grab the trophy awarded to them by Charles Weis, Ventura County superintendent of schools.

“I believe a reasonable inference would be to say that I feel excellent,” smiled 18-year-old Aaron Rackoff of Westlake High.

The team will head to Sacramento on March 27 to compete in the state event sponsored by the Constitutional Rights Foundation, a 36-year-old group dedicated to teaching young people about the Bill of Rights and active citizenship.

La Reina High School placed second, Camarillo High School third and Buena High fourth in the three-day series of exhaustive cross-examinations and closing arguments, where students are judged on how well they play the roles of lawyers and witnesses.

Their second-place finish came as a shock to many members of the La Reina team. The all-girl Catholic school in Thousand Oaks had come in first since 1994.

Many of the students, especially the seniors, sobbed and hugged their friends in despair.

But their coach was more philosophical about the loss.

“We knew it had to happen sometime,” said school librarian Eileen De Bruno, who has been coaching the team for 12 years. “Sure, some of them are disappointed . . . but kids get over things like this pretty quick.”

This year’s case, “People vs. Donovan,” was based on a real-life trial two years ago in Tampa, Fla. In February 1996, three friends were sentenced to 15 years in prison after being convicted of stealing a stop sign near their mobile home. The jury found that their action resulted in multiple deaths when an 8-ton truck flattened a car carrying three 18-year-old men.

In the mock trial, the defendant was accused of stealing a wrong-way sign, an act that allegedly led to the deaths of a truck driver and two young honeymooners.

Teams were scored by a panel of lawyers, including Dist. Atty. Michael Bradbury, on their technical courtroom and persuasive speaking skills. Although a judge rendered a verdict in each of the two mock trials staged Saturday, the outcome had no bearing on the scores.

Outside the chambers, many of the professional lawyers commented on how impressed they were with the talent of the students in the courtroom. Most of the young people were better prepared than their real-life colleagues, said Cathleen Drury, president of the East County Bar Assn.

Although the trial was realistic for the most part, students learned some lessons along the way.

Superior Court Judge Steven Z. Perren, one of the chief organizers of the competition, briefly interrupted the trial at one point to comment on the proceedings.

“Now that was a difficult witness,” he said, speaking about a purposefully long-winded Westlake High student who answered questions with more than a yes or a no. “That happens a lot in here. Witnesses come in with a mission.”

Then, turning to a laughing crowd, Perren asked, “Are her parents here? Does she answer questions like that at home?”

Some students continued arguing their case, even after the competition ended.

Danielle De Smeth of Buena High School, who played a defense attorney, earned the most individual points of the 400 students who had participated during the three-day contest.

“There’s no way we deserve this,” 16-year-old Danielle said of her team’s fourth-place finish. “We had phenomenal rounds. Everyone was brilliant. If I could, I would appeal.”

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Participating Schools

Agoura High School

Camarillo High School

Buena High School

Channel Islands High School

Fillmore High School

Hueneme High School

La Reina High School

Newbury Park High School

Nordhoff High School

Oxnard High School