OBERLIN — Some students in Allen Parish learned about the judicial system Friday by staging a mock trial involving the fairy tale slaying of one of the Three Little Pigs.

The trial, which took place in a real courtroom, placed students in the shoes of the defendant, defense attorney, prosecutor, witnesses, victims, bailiff, court reporter and jurors.

“The whole goal of the program is we want them to understand the way the criminal justice system and courts work,” District Attorney Todd Nesom said.

This is the second year the Allen Parish District Attorney’s Office and 33rd Judicial District Court have held the mock trial for third- and fourth-graders. Officials plan to expand the program next year to include ninth-graders.

“We hope they learn a bit about the criminal justice system and learn right from wrong and how important it is to tell the truth,” Nesom said.

District Judge Pat Cole said she also hopes the students learned that it takes a lot of people to conduct a trial and that each person has an important part to play.

Carley Kalscheuer, a fourth-grader at Elizabeth High School, took her role as judge seriously. “I’ve really been practicing a lot about what the judge does,” she said, showing her “mean face.”

Lakyn Thomas, a fourth-grader at Oberlin Elementary, played the defendant, the wolf, who student jurors found guilty of murder in the death of the pig. He was also found guilty of trying to kill the other two.

“I learned how the jury reacts to the verdict and how there are different lawyers and district attorneys for everything,” Thomas said.

After hearing the testimony from witnesses and police, Thomas said she agreed with the jury that the wolf was guilty.

The role as district attorney was an eye-opener for Maci Manuel, a fourth-grader from Oberlin. She says she is now considering becoming a district attorney. “I also learned that you can’t always trust a criminal,” Manuel said.

Cassie Thompson, a third-grade teacher at Elizabeth High, and Sherry Maddox, a fourth-grade teacher at Oberlin Elementary, said the students have been learning a lot about the judicial system and branches of government.

“Hopefully they are learning to be better citizens,” Wendy Daigle, a fourth-grade teacher at Oberlin Elementary, said.

(Doris Maricle / American Press)

(Doris Maricle / American Press)