RIVERSIDE – After seven rounds of testimonies, arguments, and rulings, the team of students from Poly High School in the Riverside Unified School District defeated Notre Dame High School in the finals of the 2025 Riverside County Mock Trial Competition on Tuesday, February 18, 2025, at the Riverside Historic Courthouse.

In the final round, Poly filled the role of the prosecution while Notre Dame represented the defense. Temecula Valley High School and Murrieta Valley High School shared third place.

Poly High School will now represent Riverside County at the California Mock Trial Competition March 14-16 in Los Angeles. The state winner will advance to the National Mock Trial that will be held May 7-10 in Phoenix, Arizona.    

“Congratulations to the student competitors from both teams who all have a very bright future ahead of them—whether that is in the legal field, in higher education, or in their professional pursuits,” said Riverside County Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Edwin Gomez. “I look forward to seeing Poly High School once again represent Riverside County at the state competition.”

In the 2024 Riverside County Mock Trial finals, Poly High School defeated Notre Dame High School to secure the championship for the twentieth time in school history. Third place was shared by Martin Luther King High School and Chaparral High School.

Mock Trial involves students arguing cases in front of real judges, while being scored by practicing attorneys. The competition is open to all students in grades 9 through 12 enrolled in public and private high schools in Riverside County. Teams consist of 8-25 students filling the courtroom roles of defense and prosecution attorneys, witnesses, clerks, and more. 

Attorneys, judges, and legal professionals from across Riverside County are among the more than 14,000 students who have participated in Mock Trial now in its 43rd year of competition. The month-long competition is sponsored by Riverside County Superior Courts, the Riverside County Bar Association, and the Riverside County Office of Education. 

This year’s fictional case materials provided the facts and legal background for this year's trial, People v. Gold. Taylor Alexander accused Logan Gold, husband to the woman competing against Alexander, of kidnapping her. The case centered around using evidence related to ligature marks, a positive drug test, motive, matching tire marks, and incriminating statements from Gold to build a case. However, the defense argued that the prosecutors could not use Gold’s involuntary statements because they could be considered self-incriminating—a violation of Gold’s Fifth Amendment.

For more information and photos, visit the Mock Trial web page.