Criminal Clinic
The Criminal Clinic at the University of Nebraska College of Law is one of the few prosecution clinics in the country. As such, students get first-hand experience with and invaluable insight into how the government puts together a criminal case – from initial charging decisions to ultimate case resolution. After the initial training seminars, students spend the remainder of the semester working at the local prosecutor’s office where they prosecute misdemeanor and low-grade felony cases under the direct supervision of the faculty instructor. Students are responsible for every aspect of their assigned cases and appear numerous times in court to conduct hearings on those cases. Additionally, every student conducts initial arraignments (first appearances) for misdemeanor, traffic and felony offenses.
John F. Zimmer, Class of 2016 Omaha, NE
Participating in the Criminal Clinic was one of the most valuable experiences I had during my time in law school. As a senior certified law student, I was responsible for managing my own case load and prosecuting real cases in the Lancaster County Attorney’s office.
Clinic gave me the opportunity to apply what I had learned in law school to real-world settings. I gained practical experience by handling cases at each stage of the criminal process. By conducting arraignments, participating in discovery and pre-trial hearings, and trying cases through the sentencing stage, I gained new insights into the inner-workings of our criminal justice system.