Darrell Brooks, Convicted of Killing 6 People at Wisconsin Christmas Parade, Is Sentenced to Life

Darrell Brooks, the man convicted of killing six people and injuring dozens of others when he drove into a Wisconsin Christmas parade last year, was sentenced Wednesday to six consecutive life sentences with no possibility of early release.

A jury convicted Brooks, 40, in October on all 76 counts against him following the deadly incident in Waukesha, west of Milwaukee, on Nov. 21, 2021. Six of the counts were first-degree intentional homicide.

The victims killed ranged from 8 to 81 years old. More than 60 people were injured.

Judge Jennifer Dorow got emotional during the sentencing, saying that the images of the crash “kept me up at night” and she repeatedly described the events as “horrific.” She noted that the only time “we heard about brake lights was when Jane Kulich was on that vehicle, and he braked so he could get her off the top and run her over.”

Dorow said that Brooks showed a “complete and utter lack of remorse,” barely apologizing and at times mocking victims with hand gestures or rolling his eyes.

Sentencing began on Tuesday, as victims and family members spoke about the trauma they experienced, and how they continue to suffer.

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Brooks apologized Wednesday after people spoke on his behalf.

“{snip} I want everyone to know that not only am I sorry for what happened, I’m sorry that you could not see what’s truly in my heart, that you could not see the remorse that I have,” he told the court. “That you could not hear all the prayers I’ve said in my cell, that you could not see all the tears that I have dropped.”

He went on to say that what happened at the Christmas parade was “not an attack.”

Brooks drove into the annual parade despite warnings from police to stop, including by an officer wearing an orange safety vest that read “police” who pounded on the hood of the SUV, according to a criminal complaint.

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