How
do
jurors
reach
their
verdict?
How
does
the
court
system
ensure
a
fair
and
impartial
trial?
How
can
I
pursue
a
career
in
the
legal
system?
These
are
just
a
few
of
the
questions
that
legal
professionals
answered
as
high
school
students
from
Prince
William
County
Public
Schools
(PWCS)
came
face-to-face
with
the
local
justice
system
through
a
program
called
JUSTice
LIKE
ME.
The
program,
held
at
the
Prince
William
County
Circuit
Court
building,
began
with
students
serving
as
jurors
observing
a
mock
trial.
With
assistance
from
real
lawyers,
judges,
and
law
enforcement
personnel,
the
students
deliberated
and
reached
a
verdict.
After
their
verdict,
each
law
professional
shared
a
bit
about
their
own
career
paths,
gave
advice
to
students,
and
answered
questions.
At
the
end
of
the
day,
one
lucky
student
from
each
school
won
a
raffle
to
shadow
a
local
lawyer
for
two
weeks
this
summer.
"[I
hope
students
take
away]
insight
into
the
justice
system
and
how
it
works
and
an
understanding
of
the
variety
of
pathways
into
careers
serving
the
justice
system
and
the
public,"
said
Carla
Drew,
assistant
principal
at
Patriot
High
School.
"It's
important
for
our
students
to
see
that
the
justice
system
here
in
Prince
William
County
looks
like
them,
that
there
are
a
variety
of
backgrounds
representing
the
variety
of
backgrounds
in
our
county,"
she
added.
Among
the
law
professionals
in
attendance
were
Judge
Jacqueline
Lucas,
a
PWCS
graduate
from
Unity
Reed
High
School,
whose
mother
is
an
assistant
principal
at
Patriot
High
School.
Also
present
was
Judge
Carlos
Flores
Laboy,
the
first
Latino
judge
appointed
to
the
Prince
William
County
bench
whose
wife
is
a
teacher
in
the
School
Division.
"To
see
a
judicial
bench
that
represents
the
community
it
serves
shows
students
the
impact
they
can
have
by
pursuing
a
career
path
serving
the
community
in
this
way,"
said
Drew.
"This
is
an
opportunity
for
students
to
see
that
the
justice
system
represents
all
of
them,
hence
the
name
of
the
program,
'JUSTice
LIKE
ME,'
because
the
justice
system
looks
'just
like
me."
