The Trial of Goldilocks

Tuesday my class and I joined Judge Les Meade of Tippecanoe County Superior Court 5 for a trial of Goldilocks. Les is a high school buddy of Craig's and when I approached him last fall about possibly hosting us, he was all for it. (In fact, when the trial was over, he invited us back for a civil trial and said he was willing to host us annually! Thanks, Judge Meade!)

First, though, we started with a tour of the grounds and the Courthouse interior.

 Notice how dressed up the students are? They took the trip very seriously. Some of the boys had ties on, and one was wearing a suit!

The statue of the Marquis de Lafayette, the fountain, and the Courthouse dome.

This building is truly a treasure, and, just like the Railroad Relocation project and the Feast of the Hunter's Moon,  my mother had a hand in preserving it when others thought it too expensive to maintain, wanting to raze it and replace it with a "modern" courthouse.  (Thank you, Mom!!)

Judge Meade invited us into his chambers, the two juries took their seats, and the trial began. As I said, the kids took the trip very seriously, and I had told them to be quiet and extremely respectful while in court. That boomeranged on me a bit - as the trial opened, they were hesitant to speak. Sensing what was going on, Les made a few jokes to relax everyone and thus drew them into the trial.

Both juries found Goldilocks not guilty of breaking and entering, so she got off free. (Based on what came out through the trial, I had come to the same verdict privately.)

John Phillips (EP's father and a trial lawyer who helped us prepare) on the left, Judge Meade and me on the right with all the students in between.

When the trial was over, Judge Meade invited questions and we had a wonderful time learning more about the court system and how it works from a first hand source.

I gave both men loaves of homemade Challah bread (our family's favorite) as a thank you gift, and we then took our leave and hopped on the bus for the ride back to Hershey.

I most definitely intend to take Judge Meade up on his offer - we will be back for another trial in the future!