San Marin High School senior Lauren Bollinger won First Place in the Courtroom Journalist category at the Mock Trial State Finals in San Jose, California, earlier this year. Having represented Marin County at the state competition for the second consecutive year, Bollinger competed against 26 other student journalists to claim the top prize.
Currently Co-Editor-in-Chief of San Marin’s student newspaper, the Pony Express, Bollinger attributes her win to her three years of experience with the student-run publication, the only one of its kind in the Novato Unified School District. "I definitely feel like I was well prepared to win," said Bollinger. "My experience with the 'hard news' style that's required in the competition really gave me an edge."
Bollinger also attributes her success to San Marin's own Mock Trial team, with whom she trained since October. "Working with my own team helped familiarize me with the legal nuances of the case," she said.
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The case, People v. Concha, was a second-degree murder trial that dealt with teenage drug abuse. A new case is generated each year by the Constitutional Rights Foundation, an organization that seeks to educate youth about the intricacies of the American legal process.
