Thursday, Feb. 12, 1998

Mock trial by jury

Court exercise raises rape awareness

By TAMMY SIU
Collegian Staff Writer

The court is in session. Six men and six women stand before Centre County Judge David E. Grine and are sworn in as members of the jury that will be "judging" a University student "charged" with rape and sexual assault.

Yesterday, the Center for Women Students held a mock acquaintance rape trial in 112 Kern as a part of their Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention series.

"People don't know or aren't aware of the Pennsylvania law," said Susan Del Ponte, staff assistant for the Center for Women Students. "I think (the trial) encompasses a lot of issues that need to get out there."

Judge David E. Grine swears in a volunteer jury during a mock acquaintance rape trial. The trial, held last night in Kern Building, was part of the Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention series, sponsored by the Center for Women Students. (Collegian Photo/Galen A. Lentz - click for full size image)

Assisting in the case were volunteers from the Centre County Courthouse: Grine, Assistant District Attorney Tony DeBoef and Ron Rojas, the assistant public defender. The three acted out their real-life roles with students Josie Huzinec (sophomore-English and theatre) playing the victim and Bryan Gross (junior-human development and family studies) playing the defendant. The jury comprised six men and six women selected from the audience.

The room began filling at about 6:30 p.m. with students who came to witness the event. Kate Koelle (junior-psychology) came to the mock trial as part of a requirement for her women's studies class.

"I've never come to something like this before, and I'm hoping it gives me a better understanding of (what goes on in) a rape trial," Koelle said. "I think it's a good thing to raise awareness because a lot of people are uninformed or misinformed about rape in general."

The mock trial began with an introduction and a briefing from Grine.

The following events would be an abbreviated version of how a real-life court case is conducted, he said.

In the drama, the defendant was charged with both the rape and sexual assault of the victim.

The prosecution began with DeBoef calling Huzinec to the stand. The victim's testimony was followed by a cross-examination by Rojas. Also called to the stand were the victim's roommate, played by Stephanie Epstein (senior-psychology) and the defendant's roommate, played by Joshua Kaufman (senior-science).

After all testimony was given, the student jury was asked to convene and deliberate the facts of the case. They returned with a hung jury on both accounts.

Gross, who played the defendant, said he felt the mock trial was an important event because it gave a lot of valuable information on the implications of sexual assault and rape. He added that it teaches students how to avoid being in a dangerous situation.

"I feel it is very important to raise awareness among students to prevent the frequency of these incidents across campus," Gross said.