The first day of the trial of Darrell Brooks Jr., the man facing 77 charges after allegedly driving an SUV into a crowd at the annual Waukesha Christmas Parade, killing six, was waylaid by chaos, with Brooks’ disruptive activity forcing a Wisconsin judge to call 11 recesses. Brooks, 40, has claimed to be a “sovereign citizen” and was granted the right to represent himself late last month. On Monday, he was removed from the courtroom just seven minutes into proceedings, WITI reported. Waukesha County Circuit Court Judge Jennifer Dorow sent Brooks back to his holding cell as he repeatedly interjected. “I cannot tolerate that, and I won’t tolerate that,” she told him, according to Wisconsin Public Radio. He was later allowed back into court, only for further interruptions—including a complaint that he was being sent “into a gunfight with a butter knife”—to cause Dorow to repeat her removal order. Brooks, placed in an adjacent courtroom and appearing via video, appeared to continue speaking while on mute.
