For people who confuse Hollywood courtroom dramas with reality, Mississippi State University will host a pair of real-life, state appeals cases that are open to the public today.
As part of the Mississippi Court of Appeals’ annual Court on the Road tour, oral arguments will be heard in two cases, including the conviction of Darrell Walker, who was sentenced to life in prison for his role in the 2008 slaying of a nurse in Hinds County.
A panel of three Appeals Court judges will answer questions from MSU students after the oral arguments, but will not talk about the cases which were argued.
“A lot of times, people get a romanticized idea of what it’s about after watching ‘Law and Order,'” said Taylor Luczak, president of MSU’s Pre-Law Society. “To see it firsthand gives people a lot more perspective. I encourage people to come. You won’t get stuck in something boring.”
The event is open and free to the public.
The first case will be heard at 1:15 p.m. at the Henry Hunter Center and is an appeal from John Daniel Rodgers, who was convicted in 2010 of armed robbery and burglary. Rodgers was sentenced to 30 years in prison. Walker’s case will follow at 2:30 p.m.
Luczak, a senior majoring in political science, said the roughly 100 members of the student club will benefit greatly from today’s hearings.
Three years ago, the club had been disbanded for close to five years, Luczak said. At the time, undergraduate students planning to attend law school lacked guidance on how to prepare for law school admissions tests and advisement of undergrad classes.
With the help of political science professor Whit Waide, the MSU Pre-Law Society was revived in 2008. With it came the first Court on the Road visit to the campus.
“I would say the correlation between our members and the appeals court stop isn’t so much the interest from new members as much as the questions that arise,” Luczak said. “Usually, what happens after the court is you here a lot of ‘Why did they think that? Why did the judge deny this or that?’ That’s when you’ve got them thinking about the right things, which they’ll continue to talk about amongst each other.”
Waide expects 500 people to attend. Question-and-answer sessions after each case will last 20 minutes.
MSU students also will have the chance to see law students from The University of Mississippi go to work, as three third-year law school students from Ole Miss’ criminal appeals program will present arguments on behalf of Walker.
“It’s really cool, because last year one of the two students was a State alum,” Luczak said. “It’s a very inspirational tool.”
Student involvement in the Pre-Law Society has been steady since ’08, Waide said. The Pre-Law Society hosted a continuing legal education seminar last week and will present an MSU Distinguished Jurist award this year. Four of the nine state Supreme Court Justices who are MSU alumni — William L. Waller, George C. Carlson Jr., Jess H. Dickinson and David A. Chandler — attended the seminar last week as part of Homecoming weekend and to earn continuing education hours toward their required annual total of 12 hours. More than 75 lawyers and legislators attended.
“Anytime you can provide kids with access to judges and lawyers in the real world, it’s a good thing,” Waide said. “It also helps them decide if they really want to do this. It’s a tough time to be a lawyer these days. Lawyers are getting fired and dealing with a down economy. Then, a lot of students want to go to law school for all the wrong reasons. Honestly, John Grisham books were the reason I went to law school.
“Conversely, we may have pushed a few more to law school who might not have been as interested,” Waide added. “After meeting lawyers or taking the practice LSAT, we’ve pushed an equal amount toward law school.”
The Appeals Court will hear additional cases at other stops over the next six weeks, including a civil suit involving a $300,000 Hurricane Katrina insurance case at a stop in Jackson on Nov. 29.
The Appeals Court heard oral arguments at Ole Miss in the spring.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
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