Waukesha Christmas parade suspect Darrell Brooks Jr. appears in court
Waukesha suspect gives first jailhouse interview to Fox News Digital
Fox News' Mike Tobin reports on Waukesha parade suspect saying he feels 'dehumanized.'
Waukesha Christmas parade suspect Darrell Brooks Jr. was in Wisconsin court Friday morning for a preliminary hearing related to the November tragedy, when he allegedly drove his SUV through a crowd of revelers, killing six people – including a child – and hurting dozens more.
Brooks, 39, wore a red-orange jail-issued jumpsuit and his hair up as he sat with his attorneys and stared straight ahead with his hands in his lap. The purpose of the hearing was to determine whether there was sufficient evidence for the case against Brooks to go to trial.
Brooks has remained behind bars at the Waukesha County Jail since he was ordered held on $5 million bail on Nov. 23, two days after the horror. The career criminal was originally charged with five counts of first-degree intentional homicide. A sixth count was added later. The half-dozen charges – each of which carries a life sentence if convicted – represents the six people who killed.
The deceased victims were identified as Jackson Sparks, 8; Tamara Durand, 52; Jane Kulich, 52; LeAnna Owen, 71; Virginia Sorenson, 79; and Wilhelm, 81.
WAUKESHA CHRISTMAS PARADE SUSPECT DARRELL BROOKS SLAPPED WITH 71 NEW CHARGES
Friday’s hearing comes more than seven weeks after Brooks allegedly drove his maroon Ford Escape through police barricades and into the crowd of performers at the local Christmas parade on Nov. 21.
His ex-girlfriend told police after the tragedy that Brooks had been fighting with her minutes earlier and that he gave her a black eye and a split lip, hitting her while driving erratically and with one hand.
Just Wednesday, Brooks was hit with a whopping 71 additional charges. New charges against him include first-degree recklessly endangering safety with the use of a dangerous weapon; hit-and-run resulting in death; felony bail jumping; and misdemeanor domestic abuse.
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Friday was the first time he’d been seen or heard from since Dec. 1, when he told Fox News Digital he felt "dehumanized," and like he was being "demonized."
Fox News' Michael Ruiz and Adam Sabes contributed to this report.
