The Partridge Mock Trial

By Anthony T. Shiepko Jr.
Norwich Guidon Staff Writer

Alicia Peterson was nervous. The outcome of one of history's most famous trials rested in large measure in her hands.

Peterson, 19, a sophomore criminal justice major from Gladstone, Michigan, was given the unique responsibility to decide the fate of Alden Partridge by serving as one of the jurors in a reenactment of the Oct. 20, 1817, case which ultimately brought about the formation of Norwich University.

But for Peterson and the other members of the jury, the decision was clear: not guilty.

"It was difficult sitting on the jury for the founding father of my alma matter," Peterson said. "The jury found Partridge to be not guilty, because we do attend a school that he created and the fact that he started this university showed us that he didn't have malicious intent."

"In a sense it was good that the jury of 1817 found Partridge guilty, because if they didn't we wouldn't have been afforded the opportunity to attend this great school," Peterson pointed out.

One of the most important educational visionaries, Capt. Alden Partridge, the superintendent of the United States Military Academy at West Point, had ideas which ultimately would get him into trouble with his supervisors, particularly presidents James Madison and James Monroe.

On Oct. 20,1817 Partridge was accused of treason and attempted mutiny, for which he was court-martialed. The result of the court-martial changed American military education forever. After his court-martial, Partridge founded Norwich University, the nation's oldest private military college.

A little over 183 years later, his trial was relived in dramatic detail when Norwich Criminal Justice Professor Kevin Ryan's class reenacted the event on Feb. 20, 2001, before a large audience in Plumley Armory on the Northfield campus.

The students acted as trial and defense teams, each team consisting of four members. Students also acted as witnesses and conducted examination, cross-examination and argument.

According to Ed Tracy, Norwich Director of University Events, if the mock trial resulted in an acquittal, it could lead to a reopening of Partridge's case and possibly a real-life exoneration clearing Partridge's name.

Raymond Veary Jr., a 1969 NU graduate, played the part of Alden Partridge.

"It was both a thrill and a challenge to play Partridge," Veary said. "Partridge was a multi-faceted character who had some great attributes, but he also had some less than admirable attributes."

Some of those less admirable attributes got Partridge into serious trouble, most notably with the president of the United States.

To familiarize himself with his character, Veary read the original transcripts of the trial, as well as reading two books which discussed Partridge's connection with military academies in the south and the history of Partridge at West Point, where he served as superintendent.

"Before taking my part I did not realize the political involvement had been that substantial," Veary said. "[President] Monroe probably made up his mind about Partridge and put into effect a certain chain reaction that ended up in Partridge being removed form superintendent of the academy."

"Working with the students was the most rewarding part of the whole operation," Veary said. "Being able to work one-on-one with students and answering their questions was great, but to see how they dealt with challenges and the way they used artfulness and creativity in dealing with advocacy work was particularly gratifying."

Veary hopes that every student is now able to put a human quality to Partridge and be reminded that he was "human with human attributes." Partridge was an important part of history and was overlooked by history, Veary emphasized.

"He founded this university not just simply by putting up a couple of buildings. The ideas that he formulated very young and very early in his career are ideas that continue to be what Norwich is about today," Veary said.

Henry Hogan III, a 1969 Norwich graduate, was the trial judge during the mock trial.

"I've been trying military cases for 26 years and this case was conducted in the professional manner that I would have expected to see in a real courtroom, and the students did a great job," Hogan said.

When Hogan attended Norwich, he said the students knew that Partridge had been court-martialed, but knew little about the reasons behind the trial.

"(Kevin) Ryan and I felt that a mock trial would bring out the facts of the case, as well as presenting the case to the Corps in a form that they would understand," Hogan explained. "The trial gave me an opportunity to reconnect with my school in a very special way, with students in an intellectually stimulating and challenging project."

Hogan didn't have a problem judging the founding father of his alma matter. "I believe Partridge was a teacher and that he would have recognized the value of his court marshal as a teaching tool."

For Nick Neves, 21, a junior criminal justice major from Reno, Nevada, it was a rough experience defending Partridge.

"In my opinion, Partridge was a liar who had a way of twisting things around to suit his needs when he needed to," Neves said. "But legally I had an obligation to defend him once I signed up for the course."

His personal opinion of Partridge aside, Neves was able to do his job as defense council. "The defense team and I spent a lot of time preparing our case for trial as well as preparing to give our deposition in front of the court."

The individual members of the team worked for roughly 36 hours gathering information and preparing, Neves said.

During the trial, Neves was very nervous. "We were presenting a trial in front of the entire Corps of Cadets and doing things that many years of law school prepare lawyers for."

For Neves, the Judge Advocate General (JAG) officers were a great resource to have going into a situation like this.

"They didn't treat us like students," Neves said. "They treated us like we were colleagues in the same field. The lawyers allowed the defense to develop their own ideas and helped the team to focus on certain areas that they needed to know."

Thomas Kelly, a 1976 Norwich graduate, was one of the defense team coaches, working closely with those students who were determined to give Partridge the best defense possible.

"The students were dedicated, hard working and did a great job presenting the trial," Kelly said. "I must admit I didn't know about the details of the case until we dug them out and started to work with them."

For Kelly, the experience was interesting, and he was able to take a little more of Norwich history home with him.

"I'm glad that it was taped, because it was a great learning experience for all, and future classes can look back on what we did on Feb.20," Kelly said.

For student prosecutor Heather Newcomb, 22, a senior communications major from Arrowsic, Maine, preparing for the experience of the mock trial was completely new to her.

"We didn't know how to prepare a case, how to make statements, and didn't know where to start when it came to finding evidence," Newcomb admitted.

"Once we received our trial coaches, our lives became a little easier, because they taught us how to research, prepare questions and how to make opening and closing statements," Newcomb said.

Capt. John Harding was the biggest help ever, according to Newcomb. "He taught us how to come across as we examined the witnesses as well as teaching us how to get the witness to say what we wanted them to say."

The trial was one of Newcomb's best Norwich experiences. "The trial gave me the experience to see what it was like to act in front of a large crowd and gave me the confidence that I will need to compete in the real world," she said.

"As a prosecutor, it was a lot of fun to put the founding father of my school on the stand and to dig up dirt on him," Newcomb said. "It was great putting Partridge in the hot seat and Mr. Veary acted and sounded like Partridge the way I would picture him if he were alive today."

Newcomb found the taste of a career in military justice enticing. "I've been bitten by the JAG bug and I think I'd like to pursue a career in that field further down the road, but we'll see."

"To come back to [Norwich] after 10 years and become reacquainted with my school and student body was very moving and inspirational," said 1991 Norwich graduate John Harding, trial team coach.

While Harding was a student at Norwich, he never knew why Partridge had been court-martialed at West Point. Participating in this mock trial enabled him to learn the facts behind the court-martial and shed light on how and why the school came about, according to Harding.

"The hardest part of the preparation process was interpreting the statements made by the participants in the 1800s," Harding said. "It was a matter of interpreting and trying to decipher what they meant by the words they used in old English."

Harding relished in the fact that he was given the opportunity to help prosecute Partridge.

"Partridge might have done something wrong, and in fact did do something wrong. But unfortunately we all make mistakes and it is important that the truth comes out," Harding said.

"If it meant having Partridge found guilty again, it's a good thing because we have [to learn] the truth and we learn from our mistakes," Harding said.

According to Tracy, it is important for the corps to participate in events such as the mock trial.

"Sometimes we don't take advantage of all our heritage has to offer," Tracy said, "and this was one of those opportunities where everyone could see the history and to see what went on that brought about these charges."

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