Middle-school students in Manatee and Sarasota counties got a lesson in real-life legal issues Sept. 14 from an expert teacher: Florida Supreme Court Justice R. Fred Lewis. The chief justice's visit also included a workshop for teachers Sept. 13 at the Herald-Tribune building in Sarasota.
The classes and workshops were designed to foster a better understanding of the American justice system and the workings of state and federal courts. They were developed to support the Florida Legislature's new mandate for more civics education in middle schools.
Chief Justice Lewis was appointed to the Florida Supreme Court in 1998 and became the state's 52nd chief justice in July 2006. The position rotates every two years among the seven members of the court.
Known as "the education justice," Lewis frequently travels around the state to promote civics education to teachers, administrators and students. "The importance of civics education," said Lewis, "is that without a populace informed about their civic duties, the rights and freedoms promised by our constitutional structure may not be realized."
The chief justice spoke to approximately 75 teachers from Sarasota and Manatee counties Sept. 13 at the Herald-Tribune's headquarters in downtown Sarasota. He spoke about teaching justice in the public-school classroom and led an in-depth study and teaching exercise about a Florida case involving federal protections against unreasonable searches and seizures.
Florida Supreme Court Chief Justice R. Fred Lewis leads a civics discussion at Booker Middle School.
On Sept. 14, Lewis spoke to students at Booker Middle School and Braden River Middle School, Bradenton (Manatee County Public Schools). In the interactive sessions, the chief justice gave students at both schools a taste of what it's like to be part of an actual case in the state's highest court, prompting spirited discussions about constitutional rights.
"Under the Second Amendment's rights guaranteeing free speech, do you have the right to say anything you want?" asked Lewis. "Does that include shouting 'fire!' in a movie theater?" In another exercise, he asked students, "Do you think the death penalty is 'cruel and unusual punishment' in and of itself?" "Do certain methods of administering the penalty, such as the electric chair, fit the 'cruel and unusual' description?"
Prompted by these and other probing questions from the chief justice, middle-school students debated where one citizen's rights end and another person's rights begin.
The local events were sponsored by Manatee County Public Schools, Sarasota County Public Schools and the Herald-Tribune Media Group's Newspaper in Education (NIE) program. The Florida Law Related Education Association helped facilitate Lewis's visit.
In conjunction with the chief justice's visit, the Herald-Tribune's NIE program published a 16-page student tabloid featuring information and activities about U.S. government and its history. It was delivered to all area middle schools on Sept. 11 to assist local teachers in meeting state and national education mandates for Florida's Celebrate Freedom Week, Sept. 24-28, and national Constitution Day, Sept. 17.
"We are very excited to be working with the Manatee and Sarasota school districts to help bring Chief Justice Lewis to the area," said Mary Charland, Newspaper in Education manager for the Herald-Tribune Media Group. "It's a great opportunity for teachers and students to hear first-hand how our judicial system works."