Pursuing Justice: A Hands-on Approach to U.S. Legal History

Instructors: Professor Scott Hancock, Department of History, and Professor Thomas F. Jurney, Interdisciplinary Studies

This Seminar’s twin sections will permit us to examine two historical cases tried in Pennsylvania. They will be examined on two levels: first, on the level of the trial itself—researching the court documents filed, strategies used by counsel, legal procedures then required, and other process-specific topics. Second, we will place the cases within their broader social and historical context, dealing with issues of race, mental health, media coverage of sensational trials, gender roles and assumptions, economic situation, and others. Students of one section will be looking at the perspective of the prosecutor/plaintiff, while those in the other will look to the defense side. The course will culminate with the reenactment of an historical trial, with one Seminar section on each side. This will take place as close to the real courtroom environment as possible. The course will give students an opportunity to conduct research with original documents as well as broader sources, write on the same issue in two separate contexts, and work on their oral communication skills.