St Albans school pupils grill legal eagles from magistrates in community team

Pupils at a St Albans school had the chance to be involved in a court case from the comfort of their own classroom recently, when they took part in a mock trial.

St Columba’s College boys grilled legal eagles from the magistrates in the community team, an initiative developed to increase public awareness of the role of magistrates in the criminal and civil justice system.

A spokeswoman for the school, based in King Harry Lane, said the youngsters were very interested in learning about the function of a magistrate and how the legal system worked.

There was a quiz on everything from what age people are responsible for wearing a seatbelt in vehicles, to the legalities of cycling on pavements.

The boys were then given a scenario of an old lady having her handbag stolen by two teenagers.

The contents of her handbag were then distributed amongst them, including an asthma inhaler, bank card, PIN number, house keys and her disabled parking badge, with pupils asked to discuss the impact on the victim.

The spokeswoman said: “This certainly made the boys think!”

During a mock trial the boys played various roles including a prosecutor, youth offending team members, magistrates, witnesses and a court usher.

The ‘defendant’ was accused of shoplifting and pleaded not guilty, but all three classrooms taking part in the interactive sessions found him guilty.