OMAHA, Neb. (AP) - The Nebraska Supreme Court has heard oral arguments for a case at a downtown Omaha high school.
The Omaha World-Herald (https://bit.ly/21WxlsM ) reports that about 150 Central High School students, mostly from Advanced Placement government or business law classes, attended the arguments in the school’s auditorium Thursday.
The state Supreme Court regularly travels to Nebraska’s two law schools, but this visit was the first time the court heard arguments at a high school.
“It was cool to be able to show off our school,” said Elijahiana Parker, a junior at Central High School.
Teachers spent the week prepping students on the parental rights case they would hear and teaching them complex legal terminology.
Central High alum Brian Fahey, a law clerk at the U.S. District Court for the District of Nebraska, visited classes Monday to brief students on the case and judicial process.
“I know it can be tough to follow along with oral arguments, even as a law student,” he said.
The case they heard involves three children whose stepfather wants to adopt them. The children’s biological father is serving a 16-year prison sentence after being convicted of sexually assaulting the oldest daughter.
The biological father didn’t consent to the adoption, and the mother and stepfather asked a Lincoln County Court judge to terminate his parental rights in 2014 on the grounds that he’d abandoned his children by abusing his daughter and being imprisoned.
The court agreed, but an appeals court sided with the biological father when he argued that he still wanted to be involved in his children’s’ lives. The mother and stepfather appealed that ruling and asked the Nebraska Supreme Court to judge the decision.
“I thought it would be hard to defend somebody like that,” said Amanda Halvorson, a junior at Central High School.
Students were able to ask the Supreme Court judges questions after oral arguments wrapped up. They asked about the schedule for oral arguments, how judges remain impartial and the toll that high-profile cases take.
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Information from: Omaha World-Herald, https://www.omaha.com
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