A Jury of Ones's Peers THE TRIAL OF HENRY WIRZ Lesson Summary Andersonville Prison by John Rice Dr. John C. Bates Testomony Deathlog from Andersonville Prison Confederate Juror Profiles Union Juror Profiles Trial Record Sheet Points for Discussion

The Andersonville Prison Trial of Captain Henry Wirz
US History/Law Related Classes Grade 11-12
Brian Etheridge & Kevin Holland, North Carolina

Focus/Purpose

• To gain a better understanding of the jury system, in particular a jury of one's peers and the process of deliberation.
• Note to teacher: This was not a jury trial, but will be modified into a jury trial to demonstrate jury of your peers and deliberations.

Background

Andersonville Prison Camp was located in Georgia. Captain Henry Wirz was commandant of the prison camp and was the only Confederate American to be tried for war crimes. Some likened his treatment of war prisoners to that of Hitler during Nazi Germany. Others saw him as a martyr for the cause of the Confederacy. Additional resources are available from: http://www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/Wirz/Wirz.htm

Lesson Summary

• Jurors will be exposed to testimony of trial through role-playing gathered from website testimony records.
• Judge and jurors will have a summary sheet to document point and counter points made by the prosecution and defense to aid in discussion and as a performance based assessment.
• By listening to the testimony both juries will be expected to reach a unanimous verdict and determine whether a jury of Captain Henry Wirz's peers were present during his trail.
• Students will be able to evaluate the performance of each jury to notice how the effect of having a jury of your peers can decide or change the outcome of a trial.
• Refer to points for discussion form to stimulate discussion and aid in understanding.

2 juries of 12 jurors		1Conferate Jury of 12 1 Union Jury of 12
Witnesses		Refer to Summarized testimony Dr. John C. Bates testifying for the prosecution Dr. Bates' testimony for the defense George W. Gray testifying for the prosecution
Lawyers		Prosecution Defense Teacher may create teams of lawyers depending on the number of students
Judge

Assessment

Students will refer back to the points and counterpoints of the prosecution and defense during testimony, as well as observations made about the make up of the juries and juror profiles to determine what it would take for Captain Henry Wirz to receive a jury trial "of his peers" documenting the failures of both juries in this exercise.

Bibliography

Testimony from the Trial of Henry Wirz. Excerpts from testimony of Dr. John C. Bates and George W. Gray.

"A View from the Pen at Andersonville Prison." Jon Rice.

"Death Log from the Pen at Andersonville Prison." Jas. M. Bryant, Superintendent. Graphic by Tony Drew.

Confederate Juror Profiles >>

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