In the Classroom Like in a Court
A man doesn't tell his wife he's HIV-positive and infects her. When she dies, he faces a trial: should he be charged with murder or manslaughter? A robber kills a storekeeper. His accomplice took part in the armed robbery, but didn't fire his gun: should he be prosecuted with murder? True life crimes stories are discussed by Melissa Miedico during her Criminal Law Module II course (criminal code special part). It aims to provide students with a method to solve relevant issues in criminal cases. Theory isn't enough. That's the reason why each of the sixty-four hours of the course is devoted to analyze interesting legal cases, most of them taken from real life.
"Up until the last academic year I would just describe the cases", Miedico says. "I used to point out their complexity, articulate possible solutions and read the sentence". Not this year. Miedico gives a brief statement of the facts, then she urges students to uncover criminal liabilities and to come up with defense strategies during a debate where everyone's opinion is welcomed. Students are not supposed to play defense or prosecution, even though it usually happens during classroom discussions. "It's not a moot", Miedico explains. "I'm not interested in the formalities of the trial. It's a way to captivate students' interest". In order to to discuss the crime of extortion Miedico showed excerpts of the tv programme Un giorno in pretura (One Day at the Court) about the trial of Fabrizio Corona.
Edoardo Righini appreciated the idea of dealing with well known legal cases: "Lessons are more exciting for us students. It allows you to take a closer look to the machinery of justice. You're pushed to study continuously. You must prepare for every single lesson if you want to be able to participate. It's demanding, but it's the only way to get an expendable knowledge". There are surprises too. "Our opinions about those cases were shaped by the media", Giulia Sala says. "We discovered they weren't so accurate when we examined trials and read sentences. Classroom discussions were fulfilling".
Studying real life cases is a way to go beyond traditional teaching and to encourage students' involvement. And it works. Teacher-student interaction juices up classrooms and students deal with complex juridical issues. Some of them even came up with solutions that weren't included in the sentences. Now Miedico is willing to simulate a court proceeding in the final lesson, on Wednesday, 28 May. Students will read sentences and listen to testimonies before taking the roles of defense, prosecution and jury. In the words of Giulia Sala, "lessons are more stimulating than usual".