The Lemonade Crime

Problematically, Jessie does not act impartially as the trial coordinator. She is sure of Scott’s guilt and wants to guarantee a guilty verdict; however, this backfires spectacularly when she is exposed as a liar. She continues to withhold Scott’s right to a fair trial when David insists that Scott must testify, even though he doesn’t want to. Jessie “was fairly certain that this wasn’t true. She thought she remembered a rule that said you didn’t have to testify against yourself in court” (111). However, she doesn’t come to Scott’s aid at this moment. Jessie had felt confident that “the truth would come out in court, and with truth would come justice. But instead of truth in the courtroom, there had been lies, including hers. Instead of justice, there was a crime with no punishment” (131). Jessie establishes a court built on lies and unfairness; therefore, an incorrect verdict— characterized by a lie being concealed and an unfair result—seems inevitable.

In promising Scott a fair trial but running the court with her own agenda, Jessie acts immorally and later feels remorseful and ashamed. Jessie’s admission that Megan “did the right thing” and that she was overly motivated by wanting “to win” (135) is mature and reflective and shows that Jessie learned lessons from her immoral behavior during the trial.

Jessie reflects that “this trial was nothing like what she’d thought it’d be” (114). As her grandma recommends, she has to learn that “some things are beyond your control” (132). Jessie believed that an intellectual understanding of the court proceedings and her extensive preparation of labels, maps, and instructions would allow her to control the case’s outcome. However, Megan correctly points out to Jessie that “it wasn’t really your trial. It was all of ours” (135). Once the fourth grade class starts the trial, Jessie is unable to shape the unpredictable behaviors of others and learns that she must relinquish control.

In her reproof of Jessie, Megan continues to act as the story’s moral compass. Unsurprisingly, Megan also disapproves of the basketball game. Evan notices “Megan crossing her arms and frowning;” her body language communicates her opinion that Evan is behaving immaturely and unkindly (120). Evan intentionally hits and elbows Scott in the face, and Megan declares that “this is gross. […] I’m going home” (124).

Evan is jealous of Scott’s family’s wealth. Evan looks at the maple leaves in Scott’s yard and reflects with irritation that Scott “never had to rake because his family had a service that took care of the yard” (140). Evan’s resentment toward Scott was evident earlier when Evan recalled times Scott behaved manipulatively to get his own way. Previously, Evan had perceived Scott as leading a life of privilege, overindulged, and always getting his way, which led Evan to feel even more resentful toward Scott for taking the money.

At Scott’s home, when Scott’s father yells at him aggressively for being loud, Evan reflects that his mom works from home as well, but “at least she doesn’t yell at us for making noise” (144). This altercation, where Scott’s dad behaves cruelly and embarrasses and upsets Scott, shows Evan that Scott’s life is far from perfect. This realization makes it easier for Evan to show Scott compassion and kindness and to apologize for his cruelty during the basketball game. Evan’s humility motivates Scott to own up to taking the money, illustrating that treating people with kindness and compassion is an effective means of conflict resolution.