Students take part in parish day government

A mock trial was held.

Rachel Worthy

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Parish high schoolers received a taste of the legal life during this year’s Parish Government Day, sponsored by the American Legion and Auxiliary of Area F, along with the Vermilion Parish Police Jury and School Board. Area F and Kaplan Post Commander Tony Betts and Area F President Earline Langlinais were in charge of the program. The School Board coordinator was Mary Joyce Dugas.
Held in the Abbeville courthouse Thursday and Friday, Parish Government Day offered a unique and worthwhile experience that has helped many young people to become more responsible citizens, said Vicki Betts, secretary/vice president of the Government Day committee, about the program.
The five public high schools and one Catholic School: Erath, Abbeville, North Vermilion, Kaplan, Gueydan, and Vermilion Catholic; held elections at their respective schools to elect officers before attending Government Day, who then met in the Vermilion Parish Courthouse in Abbeville and delivered speeches and participated in a Mock trial.
Students gathered in the courtroom to proceed with the Mock trial of defendants Achmed Ama, Yos Ama and Yob Ama, who were charged with aggravated kidnapping and terrorism for the highjacking of three school buses. Tyler Boudreaux was the presiding judge for the case. District attorney Dillon Boudreaux and Defense attorney Jacob Theriot, along with their assistants, Kerry Hopkins and Emily Trahan interrogated witnesses dressed in costumes portraying the roles of Agent Smurf, Fluffy Cougar, Pauly Bleaker, La-a/a, Cowa Sockie, Jeanne M’Appelle, Ida Wancha Nomo, and several more. Students were selected from the audience to serve as jurors, and after swearing in, the trial commenced.