We had a great time today with twenty-four students on the trip!

First we traveled to the county Criminal District Court #167 in downtown Austin. Judge Mike Lynch welcomed us as we arrived and we some some really fascinating stuff, including a murder arraignment and several pleas. I’ll let the students post comments about it below.

Group Photo at Lunch on the Capitol Grounds

For lunch we made the trek over to the Capitol where we ran into a few of my friends who work downtown. A random guy was playing the ukulele – he serenaded us with a few songs before we headed off to jail.

Finally, we made it over to the Travis County Jail. Inside (without cell phones, keys, pens, purses, etc.), we got a full tour of the working jail. The students got to step inside of a prisoner’s cell, see the rec area, go through booking, and see some inmates (in the traditional stripes) in their cells.

I know a lot of my expectations about the court and the jail were wrong. It was great to see how a criminal court really works. I was most impressed with Judge Lynch’s commitment to inform the accused of their rights in court. He was insistent on consistently informing them of these rights. Its good to see the judicial system work like us government teachers say its supposed to!

Below I’ve posted several pictures that Hannah took for us throughout the day. Enjoy!

[Show as slideshow]

[View with PicLens]

12►