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600
Teens Meet Legal Community at Legal Expo 2004
Minneapolis (2-23-04): --
Educating and inspiring teens about the law was the goal
of the eighth annual Legal Expo, which was held
Thursday, February 19 at the Earle Brown Heritage
Center. This free event, sponsored annually by the
Hennepin County and Ramsey County bar associations,
features volunteer attorneys, judges, law enforcement
officers, and other professionals leading educational
sessions designed for high school students.
600 students and teachers from over 20 area schools––traditional
and non-traditional, public and private––attended
this year’s Legal Expo. Most students came from the
metro area, but others from as far away as Princeton,
Minnesota. Teachers throughout the area have responded
enthusiastically to the Legal Expo because of its
ability to make the legal system "come to
life" for their classes.
Officers from the New Hope Police Department’s
Canine Unit opened the program, introducing students to
the role of police dogs in law enforcement. Then, each
hour throughout the morning, students chose from three
concurrent seminars. Students actively participated in
discussions on: Teen Crime and Consequences; The Death
Penalty; Parties, Drugs and Alcohol: What the Law Says;
Understanding Credit and Consumer Fraud; Legal Careers;
Internet Law; and School Rules: What Are Your Rights.
Current issues facing the courts were discussed in a
special session led by Justice Paul Anderson of the
Minnesota Supreme Court and Judge Wilhelmina Wright of
the Minnesota Court of Appeals.
The Hennepin County Bar Association provides a wide
range of resources for the community and for youth,
including a speakers bureau of volunteer attorneys;
Legal Stuff -- a 64 page booklet for teens; TEL-LAW, a
free phone-bank of legal messages; Lawyer Referral and
Information Services; and other public education
programming.
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