YSU celebrates Constitution Day with Moot Court event

Youngstown State University’s Moot Court team will observe Constitution Day with a Moot Court event at noon, Sept. 17 in the Board of Trustees meeting room in Tod Hall on campus. The event will consist of the YSU Moot Court team presenting oral arguments, simulating a case before the U.S. Supreme Court, addressing two constitutional issues.

Free and open to the public, the Constitution Day event commemorates the signing of the U.S. Constitution on September 17, 1787 and will last an hour for arguments.

The first Constitutional issue to be addressed is whether forcing someone to decrypt a cell phone using facial recognition violates the Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination. The second issue is whether convicting someone of involuntary manslaughter for encouraging another person to commit suicide infringes on the First Amendment right to free speech.

Several YSU alumni who were former moot court participants will attend the event to act as justices. The alumni “judges” can offer valuable insight, as each attended prestigious law schools and have acquired distinguished roles after graduating from YSU.

• Mellicent Costarella graduated from YSU in 2019 and went on to attend law school at The Ohio State University. Costarella currently works at Legal Aid of Southeast and Central Ohio, a nonprofit based in Columbus, Ohio.
• After graduating from YSU in 2014, Catherine English attended University of Cincinnati College of Law. She now works at the Ohio Attorney General’s Office in Columbus, Ohio.
• William Goodwin, who graduated from YSU in 2021, is attending University of Akron School of Law. Goodwin works as a paralegal at Kisling, Nestico & Redick LLC.
• David Hofsess attended law school at The Ohio State University after graduating from YSU in 2020. Hofsess now works as a law clerk in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Ohio.
• A 2012 graduate, Kevin Hulick graduated from University of Virginia School of Law, and is currently working as an associate at Spangenberg Shibley & Liber LLP in Cleveland.
• Jacob Tomory graduated from YSU in 2020 and went on to Yale Law School. He is currently a law clerk for the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.
• Zachary White attended the University of Minnesota Law School and now works for Buckingham, Doolittle & Burroughs LLC. White graduated from YSU in 2013.

The YSU community is encouraged to attend. A meet and greet with the alumni will be held after the event, for anyone interested in law or the experiences of the alumni.