January 1, Christmas Parade Massacre Suspect Was Out on ‘Inappropriately Low’ Bond

A man driving an SUV barreled through police barricades and into a crowd of people marching in a Christmas parade on Sunday, killing at least five people and injuring dozens of others, including children.

The suspect, Darrell Brooks, should have been behind bars at the time of the attack, but he was released on an “inappropriately low” bond days before, the state district attorney admitted Monday.

Brooks, 39, was out on a $1,000 cash bond after allegedly punching the mother of his child and purposefully running her “over with his vehicle” in a gas station parking lot on Nov. 2. Police arrested and charged him later that day with resisting or obstructing an officer, recklessly endangering safety, disorderly conduct, bail jumping, and battery.

On Monday, the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office said it had launched an internal probe into how Brooks received such a low bond given both the seriousness of his charges and his criminal history.

“The state’s bail recommendation in this case was inappropriately low in light of the nature of the recent charges and the pending charges against Mr. Brooks,” the DA’s office said in the statement. “The bail recommendation in this case is not consistent with the approach of the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office toward matters involving violent crime, nor was it consistent with the risk assessment of the defendant prior to setting of bail.”

Waukesha Police Chief Dan Thompson revealed Monday that Brooks had been involved in a domestic disturbance just minutes before the Christmas parade attack.

Police said Brooks will be charged with five counts of first-degree intentional homicide.

Police: Parade-crash suspect was in a domestic disturbance