By DON FLETCHER
News Staff Writer
Seniors from four area high schools got a peek from the inside at the local court system’s operations on May 1, the first installment of Escambia County’s 49th Law Day observance, a two-part civics lesson for the soon-to-be graduates.
Law Day was established in 1958 by President Dwight D. Eisenhower to commemorate the rule of law in American society and serve as a reminder of the importance of legal principles. The local program, founded by local Attorney Charles Godwin, is one of the most highly regarded in the country.
Students from Escambia County High (ECHS), Escambia Academy (EA), Atmore Christian School (ACS) and Flomaton High (FHS) were given voter registration applications when they entered the county courthouse in Brewton.
They then heard explanations of the system’s workings from various court officials and were addressed by Brewton attorney Earnie White, who talked about the drug crisis in the community and country, and by the session’s keynote speaker, Monroeville attorney John Milton Coxwell Jr. on the definition of a good citizen.
After Coxwell emitted some laughter when he admitted that he was selected to speak only because he was “the oldest attorney” Godwin knew, he outlined five components of good citizenship.
He said patriotism, respect for and obedience to the law, being an informed citizen who exercises his or her right to vote, a willingness to render service to state, county and community, and — one of the most important in operation of the court system — a willingness to serve on a jury when called to do so.
“A good citizen makes no excuses why he can’t serve, and he (or she) serves with a good attitude,” said Coxwell, who prefaced his remarks with President John F. Kennedy’s famous ‘ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country’ line from his 1961 inaugural address.
Another lighter moment came when Circuit Judge Jeff White, who was formerly the play-by-play for FHS, used his “radio voice” to begin introductions of court personnel.
ECHS Principal LaTonya Gill and EA teacher Bobbie Sasser were each impressed with the program.
“I think it’s certainly a great learning experience for our students,” said Gill, who was attending her first Law Day event. “Hopefully it will attract some of them to go into law.”
Sasser, who has chaperoned Law Day seniors for several years, agreed.
“Our students love it,” she said. “They walk away with a first-hand view of how our justice system works, not just the classroom. They talk about it all year long (leading up to the observance), and they talk several days about it afterwards.
“It’s one of the better things we do every year. It’s become a rite of passage for our seniors.”
The biggest “drama” of the observance came after 14 of the 12th-graders (including two alternates) were selected to hear and determine the outcome of an actual case pending before the court.
After defense attorney Cierra White proved that her client, who was charged with second-degree possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia, was actually in possession of a hemp byproduct and not cannabis. White also argued that the pipes found in her client’s home were used with the hemp product, and the teen jury came back with a verdict of acquittal on both charges. (See separate story, this edition)
The jurors:
ACS — Luke Amerson, Mary Joyner Dean, Kaden Martin;
EA — Jackson Bartley, Madison Freeman, Jamison McGhee, Ty’leaha James, Ana Chesley Robinson;
ECHS — Keegan Davis, Amaya Lambert, Alycia Smith;
FHS — Jacob Akers, Sarah Coleman, Emma Grace Fuqua.
Retired 15th Judicial Circuit Judge Charles Price delivered the keynote address on May 2, when seniors from T.R. Miller High and W.S. Neal High were in attendance.