A jury that sits in Darrell Brooks’ trial brought overnight bags to their session on Tuesday, October 25. According to Brooks’ charges, he attacked kids at a Christmas parade in Waukesha, Wisconsin in November 2021. Before closing arguments from the prosecution and Brooks ended the day, Judge Jennifer Dorow read five to six hours of jury instructions to the jurors.
Brooks argued with Judge Dorow about the topic of jurisdiction, as well as other evidence. The judge stated that she would not discuss jurisdiction or any other subject again and again. The judge stated that opportunity had closed for the gentleman. His record was self-explanatory.
In order to avoid discussing the subject matter jurisdiction in front of the jury, Judge Dorow threatened Brooks with being moved to another courtroom. During a five-minute break, she insisted that both parties take a break.
After a break, Brooks started talking about jurisdiction again. Judge Lamont sent the jury out of the courtroom as soon as he noticed them. During the judge’s instructions, Dorow requested that Brooks not speak or break the reading. Because Brooks failed to comply, he was ordered by the judge to stand near the bench so the instructions could be finished without interruption.
The judge stated the reason why Brooks was present in the adjacent courtroom when court returned after recess. The jury was also in attendance for this. When the judge closed court for a short recess, Brooks could be seen motioning with his arms outside the courtroom. The judge allowed this so that he could be present for the reading of jury instructions.
WAIT! WHAT?! #DarrellBrooks just said, “I’m happy to say my conscience is clear.” 👀 @CourtTV @CourtTVUK pic.twitter.com/GVHsZGGUmf
— Julie Grant (@JulieCourtTV) October 25, 2022
After exhausting the third break, the judge announced a fourth one because Brooks kept talking during his last. Dorow interrupted him to say, “If you say one more word…” and Brooks did.
After Brooks waved his hands for the fifth time, the judge ordered him to write down his request and made him promise not to disrupt the hearing any further. Less than an hour later, the judge called the court back into session with both the jury and the defendant present. During the reading of jury instructions, the judge stated that Brooks had sent a written letter. However, he had no intentions of maintaining decorum and remained in the adjacent courtroom. Although Brooks was quiet, his attorney remained active in the adjacent courtroom for about five to six hours.
During a break asked for by the judge, Gary Brooks signaled he wanted to return to the main courtroom. A sixth break was ordered to facilitate this transition.
Dorow considered the lost time significant after Brooks continued to wait in another courtroom. After a half hour of silence, Dorow had read through 107 pages of jury instructions. During this time, Brooks remained in the adjacent courtroom, still muted. As the rest of the instructions were read aloud, she was present in the courtroom.
After finishing reading the initial pages of her jury instructions, Dorow waved her Bible at Brooks, who was sitting in the adjacent courtroom. She urged him to pay attention to her and pointed out that she would address him later. Dorow finished reading the first 73 pages of instructions before a mid-morning meal.
When Darrell Brooks first entered the courtroom, he tried to convince the judge to let him return to the main courtroom during the reading of jury instructions. Brooks talked about older arguments and claimed that a “new day” had dawned. During the next court session, Brooks spent half an hour asking questions that had already been answered for weeks.
In the courtroom, Brooks stated that this was a new day. He talked about Social Security and maritime law as well as the eagle fringe on the American flag. Brooks mentioned that the court had yet to rule on their jurisdiction.
The eagle sitting atop the American flag was presented as a “military symbol” by Brooks on Monday to support his claims of sovereignty. These theories claim that gold-fringed flags in court imply a military presence.
Judge Dorow altered the instructions regarding implicit bias once.
Judge Dorow stated that the request for a bond was already denied before Brooks brought up “filing[s]” related to “notices of appearances.”
Judge Dorow dismisses the oath of office as unimportant in his court. “The jury must be aware of their responsibilities under the Constitution,” stated Brooks. He would inform them of this right, he added. Dorow asked if Bowers planned to mention the issue during the jury’s eventual appearance.
The judge stated it was possible the defendant would not be allowed to present a closing argument if he committed a offense. He wouldn’t be allowed to discuss jury nullification or the idea of subject matter jurisdiction in his closing.
