Maureen Ryff, Wheatland High School, Wheatland, WY
ARREST
Appropriate for grades 9-12.
OVERVIEW: The relevance and importance of laws for every citizen
is a difficult point for students to appreciate. They often state
that laws don't apply to them, or that only adults need to worry
about our legal system. Therefore, students appear to have little
understanding and appreciation of our legal system. In order to
introduce the concept or the relevance of the law to teenagers I
began a study of the law with an activity entitled "Arrest."
PURPOSE: The purpose of the activity "Arrest" is to give students
first hand knowledge about an arrest of a classmate and his/her
subsequent trial. Students become active participants in the
legal process as they become witnesses, jurors and defendants in a
trial simulation.
OBJECTIVES: By the conclusion of this activity students will be
able to:
1. Identify legal protections for defendants and procedures used
by police during the arrest process.
2. Identify Constitutional protections for individuals on trial.
3. Offer opinions about what the verdict should be in a mock
trial and explain the reasons for this opinion.
ACTIVITIES: This activity can be amended to fit individual class
needs.
1. As an introduction to a unit on the law, I staged a mock
arrest in one of my classes. At a pre-arranged time, a local
policeman entered class and arrested a student for possession
of a controlled substance. (The student and his/her
parent(s) had agreed to this after a pre-activity
conference.) The officer read the student his rights,
handcuffed him and then escorted him out of the room. They
return back to the room amid much confusion and discussion
and explained the set-up. The rest of the period was spent
with the policeman answering questions and discussing proper
arrest procedures and legal protections.
2. The two to three weeks following the arrest were spent
studying cases and Constitutional law involving the arrest of
juveniles. Teachers can use whatever method is appropriate
to discuss this material.
3. The unit of study then moved to the courtroom for a mock
trial of the student arrested on the first day of the unit.
Our local district attorney prosecuted the student and the
defense and judge were role-played by local attorneys.
Witnesses for the trial were role-played by students. The
testimony of the witnesses was based on a scenario created by
the teacher and district attorney. Students acting as jurors
then deliberated the case and rendered the decision.
RESOURCES/MATERIALS NEEDED:
1. Text resources-- Teachers may use whatever legal materials
they have. There is much flexibility here as to cases and
law studied.
2. Local resources-- This activity is greatly enhanced by having
support from community law enforcement and legal personnel.
They are best prepared to answer questions about the legal
process and a combined activity between school and the
private sector is good public relations with the community.
TYING IT ALL TOGETHER: "Arrest" was a successful activity for my
students and for me. Students became directly engaged in learning
and took an active part in the judicial process. As a result of
this activity they better understood the difficulties faced by law
enforcement officers and officers of the court in their day-to-day
responsibilities. They gained an appreciation of the process and
recognized the importance of the legal system to each and every
citizen. "Arrest" is an activity that works.
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John Kurilecjmk@ofcn.org