By Michaele Turnage
Daily Bruin Contributor
The UCLA mock trial team made history over the weekend when one
of its two teams became the first western regional team to ever
place in the nation’s top 10.
While one team placed fifth at the National Championship
Intercollegiate Mock Trial Tournament in Des Moines, Iowa on
Saturday, the other received honorable mention after coming in 13th
place.
“We all screamed and jumped up and hugged each
other,” Heather Gebelin, captain of the fifth-place team,
said of the moments after the announcement.
Although teams from Arizona State and Stanford Universities have
competed in nationals, neither received more than an honorable
mention.
Fourth-year political science student Rohan Virginkar also
brought home the first All-American Attorney Award won by a UCLA
team member.
Mock trial teams must prepare for and present both the plaintiff
and defense sides, including opening and closing statements, of a
case in four different trials. Team members, who have been
preparing since November, must get into character and portray three
prosecuting attorneys, three defense attorneys and three witnesses
for each side of the trial.
UCLA’s success came despite inadequate preparation time,
coaches or monetary resources, team members said. The team, which
had lost several members earlier in the season, later added new
witnesses, which forced members to learn new roles and adapt to
changes in the way they would be judged.
“It was surprising to find that we were at the same
performance level as those powerhouse schools,” said Gebelin,
a third-year political science student.
UCLA lost precious practice time during 10th and finals weeks,
while other teams practiced regularly, according to team members.
Schools such as Yale University which are on the semester system,
finished finals in late December ““ well before the national
competition. Such schools also finished midterms a month before the
national competition.
UCLA also faced a coaching disadvantage.
“Certain teams have a large coaching staff and funding to
support going to invitationals,” said Meeta Chakravarti, a
second-year political science student. Chakravarti said it is
common for teams like Northwestern University, who has six coaches,
to have large coaching staffs.
UCLA’s mock trial teams have one coach, Gonzalo Freixes, a
lecturer at The Anderson School at UCLA who spent 10 to 20 hours
with the members to prepare for nationals.
Inadequate monetary resources also made a difference in the
competition and allowed wealthier teams to fly to nationals with
all expenses paid.
“Other teams have more money to spend on exhibits,”
said Gebelin, who played a prosecuting attorney and a
defendant.
For example, she said, one team spent $25,000 on exhibits alone,
but UCLA only spent $150. Wealthier teams presented exhibits
featuring Web sites, color pictures and velcro posters in which
team members pulled off a velcro patch to reveal their
conclusions.
“Having the money to do that helps you perform well
because judges like it,” said Chakravarti, who played a
defense attorney.
While UCLA’s Pre-Law Society paid the team’s hotel
and rental car fees with revenues from its Law Forum and membership
fees, team members had to pay approximately $350 each to fly to
Iowa.
In addition to these challenges, the teams had to quickly adapt
to changes in their case.
“We had to change our style a little bit because Iowa
courtroom judges and lawyers have a different courtroom demeanor
than Los Angeles lawyers,” Gebelin said. “Los Angeles
lawyers are usually more aggressive so we had to tone it
down,” she continued.
Attorneys in L.A. may question witnesses using yes or no
questions. Such specific questions leave the witness little control
over their testimony and enable an attorney to more easily compel a
witness to prove their point. According to Gebelin, such conduct in
Iowa could be considered badgering a witness.
Teams which competed in nationals over the weekend had to add
two witnesses to their case.
After placing above teams from Rhodes, Yale, Northwestern and
Eastern Kentucky Universities ““ teams which have
traditionally received top-place finishes ““ UCLA’s
teams are looking to the future.
“I think we might actually have a shot at the national
title next year,” said Tom Dunlevy, a third-year english
student and the captain of the honorable mention team.