FSU Black Law Students Association Wins Mock Trial Competition

TALLAHASSEE — For the second year in a row, Florida State University College of Law’s Black Law Students Association (BLSA) won first place in the Constance Baker Motley Mock Trial Competition during the Southern Region of the Black Law Students Association’s regional convention. The 2021 meeting took place virtually Jan. 29-31.

Seven law school teams participated in the regional competition, including teams from Emory University and Wake Forest University. Winning team members were first-year students David Akintonde, of Chicago, Illinois; Samantha Seiglie, of Sunny Isles Beach, Florida; Khamisi Thorpe, of Delray Beach, Florida; Keiana Wilkerson, of Jacksonville, Florida; and alternate Ndeye "Fatou" Calixte, of Neunkirchen, Germany. They were coached by Florida State law alumnus Derrick McBurrows (’16), who practices at McBurrows Law in Tallahassee, and second-year law student Destinee Campbell, who was a member of the FSU BLSA team that won the competition in 2020.

“Congratulations to our talented student advocates on winning the regional Constance Baker Motley Mock Trial Competition, which continues an excellent record of success by FSU BLSA in regional and national competitions,” said Dean Erin O’Connor. “We are extremely proud of our students and their dedicated coaches.”

Florida State’s BLSA will compete in the related national competition in March.