Mass Shooting Threatened At Courthouse During Brooks Sentencing: Cops

WAUKESHA, WI — The courtroom was cleared for about an hour at Tuesday's sentencing hearing for Waukesha Christmas parade attacker Darrell Brooks after a mass shooting threat was made against the courthouse, according to police.

The Waukesha County Communications Center received a phone call at 9:40 a.m. in which an unknown person threatened a mass shooting at the courthouse, police said. Security was increased at the courthouse and on county grounds, according to the Waukesha County Sheriff's Department, and the Brooks hearing was recessed.

Court proceedings resumed shortly after 11 a.m., and Judge Jennifer Dorow confirmed a threat had been made to the courthouse but that Sheriff Eric Severson assured her the building was safe. The threat is under investigation by the sheriff’s department, with the assistance of the FBI and Waukesha police.

"Anyone that is visiting the courthouse should anticipate increased times for security checks," the sheriff's department said in a news release. "We want to thank the public for their patience during this minor disruption."

Brooks was convicted last month of killing six people in the 2021 Waukesha Christmas parade and faces multiple mandatory life terms in prison. His sentencing is scheduled to last until Wednesday.

Six people were killed when Brooks rammed an SUV through the parade crowd, among them an 8-year-old, and dozens more were injured, prosecutors said. A jury found Brooks guilty of 76 charges in total, including six first-degree intentional homicide charges and dozens of recklessly endangering safety charges. Each homicide charge carries a life sentence.