On April 29, the U.S. Courts in St. Louis celebrated Law Day 2026 with a group of seniors from North Technical High School in St. Louis County. The group was welcomed by the Hon. Shirley P. Mensah, U.S. Magistrate Judge, Eastern District of Missouri and Glenn Davis, president of the Judicial Learning Center Board of Directors. Each year, the Law Day visiting group participates in a contest sponsored by the Judicial Learning Center and this year was no exception. The students submitted short videos explaining how the first amendment protects their efforts to belong, innovate, dream, and succeed. Congratulations to Aysia C. (First Place) and Chanel H. (Second Place)!
A highlight of the Law Day visit is the Judicial Learning Center where the students learned more about the rule of law and the structure and function of the federal courts. They also had an opportunity to bring classroom learning to life as they examined Mary Beth Tinker’s arm band from the landmark U.S. Supreme Court case Tinker v. Des Moines – the case that first tackled student speech rights in public schools and continues to shape student rights today.
Prior to visiting, the students prepared for oral argument using Street Law’s Classroom Guide to Moot Court. During lunch, the students met with coaches from the courthouse to prepare to moot a First Amendment student speech case – Mahanoy v. B.L. The petitioner and respondent teams were coached by attorneys Maggie Peters and LeeAnn Miller, Pro Se Law Clerks for the Eastern District of Missouri, while the justices team was coached by the Hon. Rodney H. Holmes, U.S. Magistrate Judge, Eastern District of Missouri. Although the student had studied the case in advance, their coaches prepared them for the experience of standing at the podium and presenting argument to a panel of judges asking questions.
“The most important thing I learned today was that to go to court and talk about a case is a lot of pressure on a person but fun at the same time.”
Petitioner Team coached by Maggie Peters, Pro Se Law Clerk, Eastern District of Missouri
Respondent Team Coached by LeeAnn Miller, Pro Se Law Clerk, Eastern District of Missouri
Justices Team coached by Hon. Rodney H. Holmes, U.S. Magistrate Judge, Eastern District of Missouri
The vote was unanimous! Every single student would recommend this field trip to a friend.
My students said that was the best field trip they’ve been on in the past two years… and we did laser tag last week, so clearly everyone helped make an incredible impact on them! Thank you, and thank everyone who participated. It was truly wonderful! – Dave Peterson, Law Enforcement Instructor, North Technical High School
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