Mongol Trial Day 2 (1/8/14)

Today in class, we watched a segment of the video "World Conquerors" and then split up into our groups for the remaining 5 minutes of class.  I found this video to be helpful because it provided a couple of examples of Mongol cruelty and savagery, which I can use as evidence in the opening statement of our trial.  After watching the video, the prosecution met as a group and briefly held a discussion about the blog and twitter account we created.  The next step for me is to start gathering evidence which I can use in my opening statement and start creating a template for what I might include in my opening statement.  I am starting to think that a heartbreaking background story of one of our team's witnesses may be a great way to start off (and win) the trial...

At home, I posted on and added to our team blog.  I researched the role of a prosecutor and began developing the format of my team's opening statement.  I used the article Ms. Fishel provided us with in addition to an outside source.  From the outside source, I read about an actual murder case, which provided me with a rough idea of the general tonality of an opening statement and which types of information to include.  Some aspects of the opening statement I have learned about through my research are summarized in the following:

• Begin the statement with "Your Honor, my name is Shivesh, representing the prosecution in this case"
• Make the opening statement as intriguing and moving as possible
• I am thinking about creating a general outline for the presentation:
• Introductory statements
• Make sure to state the time frame and set place
• Thesis St. (strong statement convicting the Mongols of crimes against humanity)
• A sad, moving story, which portrays the Mongols as ruthless blood-thirsty beings
• The full details of the case
• Confidence is the key to swaying the judge (act 100% confident!)

From the notes I took on Chapter 18, I have begun to extract the details necessary to proving the guilt of the Mongols (not to be confused with the details regarding the circumstances during the terror of the Mongols).  I am now starting to narrow in on the exact details which I will use in my opening statement.

I think the entire Mongol Trial process is going very well (at least for the prosecution team...) and it has been a great learning experience so far.  I have researched and learned much about the justice system and the trial process.  The reading in the textbook provided context and historical reference, while other external sources helped me begin to formulate my opening statement.


Citations:

1. "The Wig Shop Murder." Criminaldefense.homestead.com. http://criminaldefense.homestead.com/Dror.html (accessed January 7, 2014).