Circuit 7 mock trial champs North Point High School competed in the Maryland mock trial quarterfinals March 11 against a team from Walter Johnson High School of Bethesda.

The Eagles earned a spot in the competition following a win over Central High School of Capitol Heights earlier this month. With a score of 126.5 to 124.5 in the Circuit 7 championship, North Point was named one of the “State Eight,” advancing to the quarterfinal contest. Circuit 7 includes teams from Calvert, Charles, Prince George’s and St. Mary’s counties.

This marks the third consecutive year North Point has earned the Circuit 7 champion title. The team is coached by Frederick Sanford, a business education teacher, with intellectual property lawyer Nick Teleky, a North Point graduate, serving as an attorney coach.

The team has 21 students who spend the season studying a mock court case and arguing its side in faux trials. The case this year is the State of Maryland vs. Dana Luna, a case that revolves around a high school class president race and First Amendment rights.

At the March 11 trial, North Point’s defense fell to the prosecution of Walter Johnson by two points by each of the competition’s two scorers — one score posted was 148 to 146, the other 145 to 143.

“Our young adults did their very, very best and we had an excellent season, an excellent run,” Sanford said.

Three team members will graduate this spring, leaving room for younger team members to address the court. “We have a good cadre of underclassmen who will step up,” Sanford said.

The state championship is set for March 21 at the Supreme Court of Maryland courthouse in Annapolis.

About CCPS

Charles County Public Schools provides 28,162 students in grades prekindergarten through 12 with an academically challenging education. Located in Southern Maryland, Charles County Public Schools has 38 schools that offer a technologically advanced, progressive and high quality education that builds character, equips for leadership and prepares students for life, careers and higher education.

The Charles County public school system does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age or disability in its programs, activities or employment practices. For inquiries, please contact Dr. Mike Blanchard, Title IX/ADA/Section 504 Coordinator (students) or Nikial M. Majors, Title IX/ADA/Section 504 Coordinator (employees/ adults), at Charles County Public Schools, Jesse L. Starkey Administration Building, P.O. Box 2770, La Plata, MD 20646; 301-932-6610/301-870-3814. For special accommodations call 301-934-7230 or TDD 1-800-735-2258 two weeks prior to the event.  CCPS provides nondiscriminatory equal access to school facilities in accordance with its Use of Facilities rules to designated youth groups (including, but not limited to, the Boy Scouts).