Twenty-seven Creekview High School Law and Criminal Justice Academy students are advancing to the YMCA Youth and Government State Conference in Austin in January after placing at the District Tournament in November at Duncanville High School.

The State Conference will be the qualifying event for the National Judicial Conference in Chicago in July.

“Many of these students achieved these results on very little sleep, having been to the football playoff game in various roles the night before and still arriving for a 6 a.m. departure time,” said Jonathan Ray, Law and Criminal Justice Academy Director and teacher. “Of the five state districts, ours is by far the largest and most competitive.”

The Academy also brought back three District Championships in November. Law Academy President and senior Brandon Fantine was the District Champion Mock Trial Judge for the second year in a row. Seniors Isaac Yoo and Angela Nguyen were District Champions in the Moot Court competition. Sophomore Kyren Davis was District Champion Moot Court Justice.

In addition, the Legislative team, consisting of Liza Frolova, Maeve Durkee, James Lee, Daiyan Chowdhury, and Elvis Morla, passed two bills at the District contest.

The District Mock Trial case was a civil suit over a forged Rothko painting. Creekview’s Academy had two Mock Trial teams. One team consisting of Alina Kassam, Sharon Oh, Yashica Nabar, Nicholas Pesqueda, Kat Keo, Joy Lee, Amisha Islam, and Chelsea Martinez placed 6^th and the other team consisting of Kelsea Hayes, Edith Rosas, Xena Cruz, Dominic Rogers, Carmyn Wise, and Shemaiah Dejorge placed 14th. Presiding as Mock Trial judges along with District Champion Brandon Fantine, were Danae Anderson, Emma Hill, and Leslie Plata.

The District Moot Court case issues were whether the community caretaker exception to the warrant requirement extends inside the home and whether the sixth amendment right to counsel attaches to a pre-indictment plea negotiation. In their first ever case, the freshman team consisting of Jimeong Kang and Lizbeth Alvarez placed 8^th and the other freshman team consisting of Caroline Ready and Bianca Flores placed 9^th. Along with the District Champion Davis, Sungjae “Brian” Kang and Atlas Wyatt were also Moot Court Justices.

The CFB Law and Criminal Justice Academy is a part of the district’s Career and Technical Education (CTE) Department. CFB strives to develop students who are trained, certified and hirable upon graduation. In elementary and middle school, CTE students reflect on their life and career goals through exposure to in-demand career options and exploratory courses, so they can make informed decisions about their future. In high school, students prepare for their career path of choice through internships, certifications, and post-secondary opportunities, ensuring they graduate college, career, and life ready.

CFBISD offers Programs of Study to students in many different industries. To learn more about what opportunities are available to students, visit the CTE Programs of Study webpage.