State Representative Eugene O’Flaherty and Judge Julian Houston will serve as guest speakers at the “Freedom and Justice” Law Day celebration scheduled to take place at the Historical Charlestown District Court, Three City Square, on Thursday, May 1st, at 7 p.m.

          State Senator Jarrett T. Barrios, City Councilor Paul Scapicchio, Judge Albert Burns, and Attorney Paul Anthony are all expected to attend as well.

          The celebration will feature the Charlestown High School U.S. Airforce Junior ROTC, under the direction of Lieutenant Colonel John Merriken, and Bagpiper Brian Burke. Three winners of an essay contest and another three winners for the poster contest will receive awards presented by the Friends Committee of the Charlestown District Court. Chief Probation Officer Dr. Barbara Burke, Ph.D, will present a momento to members of the Friends Committee.

          In addition, the winners of the “Freedom and Justice” essay and poster contest will be recognized and given awards. The essay winners are as follows: Alyssa Gallarelli, Melissa Castillo, Matthew McLaughlin, and Rebecca Donovan. The Essay winners are all students at Charlestown Catholic Elementary School. The winners of the poster contest are Ardrey Martinez, Clarence Edwards School; Hector Kilgoe, Warren Prescott School; and Paula Breen, Charlestown Catholic Elementary School.

          The Charlestown District Court was first established in 1630.

          The Massachusetts Probation Service is a department of the Massachusetts Trial Court. Probation’s Juvenile Court System includes 11 divisions which represent every county in the state. There are 12 Superior Court, 70 District Court and 12 Probate & Family Court probation offices throughout the Commonwealth. The Office of the Commissioner of Probation (OCP) serves as the central administrative office for the state Probation Service and the Office of Community Corrections which operates 22 Community Corrections Centers throughout the state.

          Law Day, an annual celebration of the legal system which generally takes place in May, was established by President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1958 to recognize “the country’s great heritage of liberty, justice and equality.”