ALBUQUERQUE – This Saturday, November 19th, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of New Mexico Youth Advisory Board of the Central NM Chapter is sponsoring its first Bill of Rights Mock Trial.

The event will take place from 8:30 am until 3:00 pm at the UNM Law School. There will be both morning and afternoon sessions with a midday lunch provided for all.

Teams from five area high schools will participate. The case chosen for this Bill of Rights Mock Trial involves a First Amendment issue, freedom of speech. It centers around the repercussions given to a student for voicing his or her opinion on a controversial issue at a school function.

“This case addresses an issue very important to students: free speech. Free speech is one of our nation’s most prized liberties, and students are just as entitled to it just as must as anyone else,” said President of the Youth Advisory Board Daniel Williams.

The event is co-sponsored by the Center for Civic Values and the New Mexico Foundation for Open Government. The Youth Advisory Board is under the auspices of the ACLU-NM Central NM Chapter Education Task Force.