On Thursday, April 13, Hamilton High School became the 57th District Court. It was the first time Hamilton has hosted the 'Court in School' program since 2011 and the first time the 57th District Court visited an Allegan County school since 2018.
"We request an order from the Michigan Supreme Court that designates Hamilton High School for an actual courtroom for today's court and proceedings," said Honorable William A. Baillargeon. "We do this in order to give students an opportunity to see courtroom incidents in action."
The students get to see live participants who are defendants with real sentencing and consequences. Following court, the students see a presentation from the court and learn about consequences of their actions.
"I think it's incredibly valuable for our tenth and twelfth grade students to go through this experience," said Hamilton High School principal, Mitch Bosch. "With our tenth graders going into driving soon and seniors to go through prom, graduation, and the next steps of life, it's important to see the real world consequences for their decisions."
On top of the court proceedings, students were able to learn about the careers of a judge, attorney, police officer, and different roles within the courthouse.
Hamilton Community Schools would like to extend our sincere gratitude to Honorable William A. Baillargeon, the attorneys, and all of the 57th District Court for making this experience possible.
