The second version of the Constitution Project wrapped up last week, with high school students from four Texas County school districts conducting mock trials in courtrooms at the Justice Center.
Started earlier this year by Texas County associate circuit judge Doug Gaston, the Constitution Project is a program designed to give students a first-hand look at what people involved in the country’s justice system do, from courtroom personnel, to law enforcement officers, medical workers and journalists. Mentored by real-life representatives of each field, students involved in the program do the jobs themselves, including everything from interrogating suspects, to processing evidence, acting as attorneys and documenting incidents through articles and photos.
The project began last spring involving only students from Houston. Moved to an annual fall event, the second installment was expanded to also include students from Cabool, Licking and Summersville.
It won’t be long before the list features school districts all over Missouri.
Tony Simones, manager of judicial education for the Missouri Office of State Courts Administrator, has been closely following the second Constitution Project. He has filmed footage for a professionally-produced video that will soon be presented to courts and high schools around the state to promote the idea.
“We think that what is happening here in Houston is something that should happen across the state,” Simones said. “We wanted to create a record of what happened, not only depiction of what transpired, but showing how it was done – the priorities, the steps taken and everything people ultimately got out of it.
“We want to say, ‘Look, this is what happened in Houston, and you can make it happen as well.’”
The project’s expansion could end up taking the competitive aspect all the way to a winner-take-all finale.
“Judge Gaston has a great vision of what would ultimately be a state-wide competition that culminates in Jefferson City,” Simones said. “I’m on the Missouri Supreme Court Civic Education Committee, and we met last Friday and this was identified as something that could become a feature project for the committee.
Simones said supreme court judge Patty Breckenridge is among those who have expressed interest in the growth of the Constitution Project
“The committee is very enthusiastic about it,” Simones said. “There are a lot of significant players who have been lining up behind this and have already been talking about it.
“I think it’s important because I’m a big believer in learning by doing. One of the best ways of learning about the Constitution is to immerse yourself in it, and I would argue that is what is at work here. This is more than reading something in a book or listening to a few speeches, this is students wading into the waters, rolling up their sleeves and gaining first hand experience about what the Constitution means on a daily basis.”
Gaston, who also serves on the Supreme Court Civic Education Committee, said several state agencies and organizations have already committed to supporting a statewide Constitution Project, including the Missouri Press Association, the Missouri State Highway Patrol and the Missouri Bar Association. Others are expected to follow suit.
“I think it’s tremendous that more kids are going to be given this opportunity,” Gaston said.
Simones said the average American really has no way to grasp all that goes into upholding the Constitution. But the Project begun in Houston gives young people a glimpse.
“The Constitution is a big idea that is ultimately carried by millions of us,” Simones said. “We all get under it and hold up our specific portion, whether it’s enforcing a law, covering a trial and letting people on the outside know what’s transpiring, or individuals sitting at these courtroom tables arguing what the fourth amendment demands in a particular set of circumstances.
“One of the things I love about what Judge Gaston has done here is that the Constitution has been taken out of the exclusive domain of lawyers and people are made aware of the roles we all play in making sure Constitutional doctrines and principles continue to live.”
Attending last week’s wrap up to the project was Missouri Bar Association President Patrick Starke, who sat in on a mock murder trial and mentored judge Tyler Curlile of Summersville. At the end of the day’s series of trials, Starke addressed a large crowd that included soldiers from Fort Leonard Wood, local veterans, and numerous representatives of the Missouri State Highway Patrol, all of whom were there as part of a project-ending ceremony.
“I’m amazed and proud that all of you are here doing this,” he said. “It’s really a great way to give you young people a first-hand look at what is really involved in upholding our Constitution.”
Gaston said the closing ceremony was designed in large part to touch the hearts of the students involved and get them thinking about what the Constitution of the United States stands for.
“I was hoping to again drive home that message that it’s a precious gift to be free, and that’s really what it’s all about,” he said. “Not just accomplishing whatever you want to in your career, but just knowing how blessed we are in this country.
“Hopefully, this will make some young people fall a little more in love with the Constitution and a little more in love with our country. That’s the biggest goal of all.”