Semifinals #1 (December 2024)

ModernBrain Gold advances to the final over ModernBrain Silver on a 3-2-1 decision.

The case: The defendant, Jimmie Tanks, is charged with first-degree arson and attempted first-degree murder. The charges stem from an incident on July 1, 2024, when Tanks allegedly set fire to a house owned by Bertie Darrow, causing significant damage and serious injury to Darrow. The prosecution argues that Tanks deliberately used gasoline to start the fire as an act of revenge against Darrow, who had previously reported Tanks to the police for theft, leading to Tanks' imprisonment. Tanks, however, denies any involvement in the arson, claiming instead that he was experimenting with gasoline for an unrelated Fourth of July project at the time of his arrest.

Prosecution: Christiana Garcia, Sailee Charlu, Daniel Chien, Audrey Ma

Defense: Vivian Mei, Anya Luo, Mira Jiang, YuQiao Shao

Judges: Miles Roorda, Stella Lopresti-Busick, Margaret Henderson, William Wu, Jay Odum, and Andrew Thompson.