SCHOOL OF LAW
State Supreme Court holds session at Woonsocket High School
WOONSOCKET – Pleading before the state Supreme Court yesterday with passion and conviction, lawyer George G. West claimed his client deserved a new trial because the judge in his case should have suppressed his spontaneous confession about being in possession of a stolen gun.
There was nothing unusual about West’s rhetorical skills and dogged persistence on behalf of his client. “One day we are going to have an argument where George gives an inch,” Supreme Court Justice Francis X. Flaherty later quipped.
The difference in West’s delivery was where the Supreme Court heard his case: In the auditorium of Woonsocket High School, before an audience of some 450 students.
In a rare road trip, the five members of the state’s highest court heard three real-life cases, trading an intimidating, elevated bench in a stately courtroom at Providence’s Licht Judicial Complex for seats on the high school stage. The justices hold court in a school setting usually no more than once a year as part of its mission to bring the practice of law into the classroom and give young people insight into what a career in law might look like.
“I think providing an opportunity and exposing them to professionals operating at a very high level is novel to them,” said social studies teacher Robert Stewart. “I think seeing this will expand their horizons of what they think is possible for them.”
Amilitary lawyer for 20 years before he became a teacher, Stewart could barely suppress his excitement about the chance to work some applied law into
the classroom. He said all his students were briefed on the details of the cases that were argued before them and he had even made some educated guesses in advance about how they’d be decided. The court will make a point of informing teachers of its decisions for future lessons in class, Chief Justice Paul Suttell told students during a brief introduction to the session.`
It took more than two hours for the court to hear the three cases, including two “show cause” hearings and a full-blown oral argument. Show cause hearings are merely an opportunity for the court to determine whether they’ll consider an appeal, so lawyers were given just 10 minutes each on those.
Lawyer Megan Jackson got a warm welcome from the audience after she explained that her mother was a WHS alumnus. Jackson appeared before the court to seek a new trial on behalf of Keith J. Pittman, who was convicted of robbery for a not-so-successful attempt to steal a sack of electronics worth about $3,000 from a man in Providence. She claimed it was too dark outside and the victim was too distracted checking his belongings after he apparently chased down Pittman and forced him to surrender the booty. A second assailant escaped.
Members of the high court kept the mood light, as evidenced by Justice Maureen McKenna Goldberg’s wry assessment of Pittman’s foibles.
“Whatever happened next indicated that whoever performed this robbery were not very good robbers,” Goldberg said. “They’re not very good thieves and they can’t run fast.”
She got no argument from State Prosecutor Owen Murphy.
“They should find another line of work,” he agreed.
In a first-ever appearance before the high court, lawyer Geoffrey M. Aptt argued for justice on behalf of a man who was accidentally shot in the abdomen by a friend while they were doing some target practice on a 40-acre farm in Warren. The victim required $90,000 in medical treatment, including the removal of a foot-long section of his intestines that will leave him with a lifetime of problems. Previously a lower court judge had ruled that the owner of the property bore no liability for the man’s injuries, largely because he didn’t live on the farm.
IF THERE was one revelation from the day’s session, it might have been why it’s said that lawyers argue cases. During their presentations, the six lawyers who appeared before the court – including two state prosecutors, often engaged in rhetorical repartee and snappy back-and-forth volleys with the jurists. The judges routinely peppered the lawyers with questions about their arguments in tones that were testy, incredulous and, occasionally, even a bit belittling.
“Criminal Minds!” exclaimed WHS student Leah Benonisen, 15, referring to the popular TV series. “That’s what it reminds me of!”
But Benonisen said she was impressed by how articulate the lawyers were and how passionately they fought on behalf of their clients – even some who seemed to have obviously done something wrong.
“I like it,” she said. “It makes a difference in my education. After seeing this it’s kind of making me think I want to be a lawyer instead of a nurse.”
Dave Andrews, who teaches criminal justice at WHS, said he was hoping the opportunity to see lawyers on both sides of a case would help students understand that everyone has rights in a legal dispute, even those accused of criminal wrongdoing.
“I hope they can get an idea what the appeals process is all about and I hope this gives them more of a multiple-perspective view,” he said. “Basically, I’d like them to decide for themselves, ‘Do they have a case?’”
Though the high court’s school-based hearings are mainly designed to give students an up-close look at the legal profession, the Supreme Court still likes to call the program “riding the circuit” in tribute to a centuries-old tradition in which members of the judiciary traveled through the various jurisdictions to hear cases. Along with buggy whips and wooden shovels, however, the practice eventually faded into history as the advent of trains and cars eventually made it easier for litigants to travel to more centralized courtrooms.
There’s a good reason why the Supreme Court only schedules one out-of-Providence session a year, Chief Justice Suttell explained.
“It’s not very easy to bring these court hearings outside of Providence,” he said. “We bring the whole operation with us. Logistically, it’s quite an undertaking.”
The entourage included members of the Capitol Police, who screened visitors through a metal detector before they were allowed to enter the auditorium, just as they would before entering the Licht Judicial Complex. The court also brought along its entire staff of clerks – more than a half-dozen recent law school graduates who do legal research and writing for members of the high court – Suttell, Goldberg, Flaherty, Justices Gilbert Indeglia and William Robinson.
In addition to hundreds of WHS students, members of the Mount St. Charles Academy debate team were invited to be part of the audience for the event. Kara Picozzi, deputy of communications for the high court, said Woonsocket High School was chosen for this session’s installment of riding the circuit after Woonsocket Education Department Human Resources Director James Wolfgang reached out to the judiciary.
“It’s a great opportunity for students to see what goes on in real life and I thank the Supreme Court for giving us this day,” said Carnell Henderson, the principal of the high school.
After lawyers finished arguing their cases, members of the judiciary held a brief question-and-answer session with the audience. Later, they enjoyed lunch in the school cafeteria with a group of students.
“Ladies and gentlemen,” proclaimed Goldberg, “you have been treated to some of the finest appellate advocacy in the state of Rhode Island... You have been a great audience and I’m thrilled to be here.”