Gold E. Locks found guilty of bad manners

By James Grob, jgrob@charlescitypress.com

After 15 minutes of deliberation, a Floyd County jury found fairy tale character Gold E. Locks guilty of bad manners in a trial held at the Zastrow Room at the Charles City Public Library on Friday.

It was all part of a what Floyd County Magistrate Katherine Evans called a “judicial education event.”

“It is just a fun event to educate kids as to how the court system works and why it’s important,” Evans said. “We in the judicial branch feel that it’s important to reach out to the public and educate people of all ages about what we do.”

Fifth and sixth grade students from the Central Springs School District were on hand to watch the mock trial. Evans said there was an effort to make the trial as realistic as possible, with actual attorneys, bailiffs and court reporters as well as witnesses and a jury.

“It’s a way to show the kids — and really anyone — how the court system works, in a fun way,” she said.

Second Judicial District Judge Gregg Rosenblatt presided over the trial, while local attorneys Ann Troge and Danielle M. Ellingson presented the case, Ellingson for the defense of Goldilocks and Troge as the prosecutor, representing The Three Bears.

The docket marked the case as Mom A. Bear, Pop A. Bear and Babe E. Bear vs. Golden Locks, also known as Gold E. Locks, who was accused of bad manners for her actions at the Bears’ home, described as “a little bungalow house in the forest.”

The witnesses were played by Charles City High School drama students. Gold E. Locks was played by Jenna Aikey, while Blake Hoeft, Addison Tracey and Savannah Baldus played Pop A. Bear, Mom A. Bear and Babe E. Bear.

“Some other counties have done this mock trial for students before,” Evans said. “It’s a script designed with students in mind.”

Although much of the trial was scripted, there was plenty of room for improvisation, and Evans said that isn’t all that much different from an actual trial, where most of the testimony is known in advance but some of it comes as a surprise.

“Part of managing a trial is to expect the unexpected,” she said.

The trial lasted about an hour. Troge, the attorney for the prosecution, alleged that Gold E. Locks entered the home of the Three Bears and ate some porridge out of the bowls of Mom A. Bear and Pop A. Bear. She ate all the porridge from the bowl of Babe E. Bear. After eating Babe E. Bear’s porridge, Gold E. Locks sat down in Babe E. Bear’s chair and broke it. After breaking the Babe E. Bear’s chair, Gold E. Locks went upstairs and fell asleep in Babe E. Bear’s bed.

“Through our evidence we will show that Gold E. Locks did not use good manners in her actions,” Troge said.

Ellingson, in the defense of Goldilocks, called the charges “ridiculous” and claimed that Gold E. Locks thought she was an invited guest of the Three Bears, as the front door of the bungalow was wide open.

“Gold E. Locks was out walking in the forest, minding her own business, and picking flowers, when she smelled the sweet aroma of porridge cooking,” Ellingson said. “We will show that Gold E. Locks was a guest — and certainly did not demonstrate any bad manners.”

The jury agreed with the prosecution, returning its guilty verdict.