WAUKESHA, WI (WSAU) — Day one of the Darrell Brooks trial has been anything but smooth in Waukesha.
The man accused of running his SUV into the Waukesha Christmas Parade and killing six people while injuring 60 others has spent much of the morning interrupting the judge, resulting in several recesses and off-the-record moments.
Those in the courtroom say the first interruption came just seven minutes into the day. Brooks has argued that he doesn’t recognize the name on the case (Darrell E Brooks), his rights as a sovereign citizen, and the jurisdiction of the courtroom. He has also asked for copies of Judge Jennifer Dorow’s oath of office.
Darrell Brooks trial day 1, 7 minutes into the day Judge scolds Brooks for constantly interrupting her, she calls a recess and sends Brooks back to holding cell until he can be respectful of court.
— Hillary Mintz WISN (@WISN_MINTZ) October 3, 2022
Brooks added that he hasn’t had time to prepare his defense because he was only given three days to look over all the materials.
Last week Judge Jennifer Dorow released Brooks’ attorneys, finding him competent to serve as his own defender in the case. She added that it’s unlikely that she will allow him to keep an attorney on standby if he wants to change his mind partway through the trial.
Proceedings are scheduled to go through October 28th. Brooks faces a laundry list of counts in the case, the most severe of which include six charges of first-degree homicide by intoxicated use of a vehicle, which carries an automatic life sentence.
