Criminal Mock Trials

This book contains eight realistic mock criminal case files for use in pretrial advocacy, trial advocacy, and mock trial courses. This book is recommended for use in conjunction with the course book, Criminal Pretrial Advocacy, but may also be used as a stand-alone resource for practicing trial advocacy. The case files herein provide witness statements, photographs of physical evidence, police reports, charts and other demonstrative evidence, jury instructions, and additional materials that criminal prosecutors and defense attorneys would rely on to prepare a case for trial. These case files can be used for a variety of criminal pretrial litigation exercises, including: developing case theories; drafting and arguing motions; conducting pretrial and preliminary hearings; preparing witnesses for trial; and negotiating case settlements. The case files include a myriad of pretrial motion issues, such as search and seizure issues and suppressing defendants' statements. This book of mock trials can effectively be used to conduct complete trials, from motions in limine to closing arguments. The case files are an appropriate length for use in weekly or biweekly assignments. Each case file presents a set of facts that allows an able prosecutor to prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt, or an effective defense attorney to raise a reasonable doubt. This book is intended for use in college and law school trial advocacy courses. About the authors: Terry Adamson has taught trial advocacy and pretrial advocacy classes at Pepperdine University School of Law for eighteen years and is one of the trial team coaches for Pepperdine's nationally acclaimed trial advocacy program. She is also a former Los Angeles County Deputy District Attorney, and has prosecuted a wide range of cases. She was the co-prosecutor for the high-profile, thirteen month long jury trial known as the "Chinatown" case, in which one of the multiple murder victims was a police officer. Professor Adamson was a Malibu Superior Court Commissioner for eighteen years, presiding over every aspect of felony and misdemeanor cases. She is currently the Distinguished Jurist in Residence at Pepperdine University School of Law. Professor Adamson is a recipient of the David McKibbin Outstanding Teaching Award. H. Mitchell Caldwell teaches Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure as well as trial advocacy courses and serves as advisor of the law school's highly successful interschool trial teams. Before joining the Pepperdine faculty, he was a trial prosecutor in Santa Barbara and Riverside Counties. Professor Caldwell routinely represents condemned prisoners in the appeals of their death sentences before both the California Supreme Court and the U.S. Supreme Court. He has written extensively in the area of criminal procedure, trial advocacy, and the death penalty and is the co-author of Ladies and Gentlemen of the Jury (1998), And the Walls Came Tumbling Down (2004) and The Devil's Advocates (Fall 2006). This popular series of books celebrates significant jury trials and the lawyers who tried the cases. Ladies and Gentlemen of the Jury was selected by the Los Angeles Times as a best non-fiction selection. Caldwell also co-authored The Art and Science of Trial Advocacy for use at the law school level. Professor Caldwell has received several teaching awards including the Luckman Distinguished Teaching Award and was the recipient of the Richard Jacobson Award as the nation's premier trial advocacy teacher in 2000.