On Tuesday 27 March, Tim Harris JP, the organiser of the North West London local heat of the Magistrates’ Court Mock Trial Competition, presented certificates to our Year 8 students at our Celebration Assembly. He commended the students for their excellent performances in a competition that took place at Willesden Magistrates’ Court on Saturday, 10 March.
In Round One our prosecution team, led by prosecution lawyers Dahir Aden and Leah McIntosh, competed against Claremont High. Nicholas Jeffrey-Smart impressed the audience in his two roles of Legal Adviser and Court Usher. Salma Iman and Sharnah Harper responded confidently as prosecution witnesses.
In Round Two, our defence team led by lawyers Adelina Ciobanu and Idman Abdi competed against Finchley High. Kyron McFarline was a superb defendant as he had studied the case thoroughly. Urvashi Ullas, as the defence witness, impressed the judges with her clear enunciation and command of detail.
The magistrates Hodan Aden, Riyaben Patel and Niki Cangi listened thoughtfully throughout both trials and debated the evidence with insight and good judgment.
Layla Mohamed, Sumania Iman and Shahd Ali also attended the competition and they are preparing submissions for the National Court Reporters and Court Artists’ Competitions.
What our students had to say…
The visit to Willesden Magistrates’ Court has enabled me to have a clearer view on the possible consequences for even small misdemeanours, such as non-payment of parking fines, for example. The visit helped us prepare for our competition on Saturday 10 March, as it included a prosecution opening statement and the presentation of the prosecution and defence cases. We learnt a lot about techniques in cross-examination, and we were lucky to be able to stay until the verdict was delivered. (Adelina Y9)
The visit was very inspiring and a great experience. It was amazing to see the court and what important work magistrates do. Anyone over the age of 18 can apply to be a magistrate, which is a voluntary position. I am taking the role as lead magistrate in the competition – there are three magistrates in the team and we will return a verdict of guilty or not guilty when we have listened to the evidence. (Hodan Y9)
The visit was amazing because the magistrate, Tim Harris, explained things to us before and after the trials and so we are well informed for our own competition. I got to learn new things about Law and I was impressed that students were allowed to sit in on a real trial. (Sharnah Y9)
