Wisconsin
Judge lets parade suspect represent himself
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A judge decided Wednesday to allow a Wisconsin man accused of killing six people and injuring dozens more when he allegedly drove his SUV through a Christmas parade represent himself at trial, finding that he suffers from a personality disorder and faces an uphill fight against an experienced prosecutorial team but is mentally competent.
Waukesha County Circuit Judge Jennifer Dorow’s decision leaves Darrell Brooks in the unusual position of defending himself against a score of charges, including six counts of intentional homicide. His trial is scheduled to begin Monday with jury selection.
Brooks has a high school equivalency diploma but did not attend college. Dorow said he has a constitutional right to act as his own attorney if he’s mentally competent.
Dorow said she reviewed evaluations four psychologists conducted of Brooks and agreed with their findings that while he has a personality disorder and is disruptive, he is intelligent and articulate enough to defend himself. She warned him that he will have problems understanding the rules of evidence, when to object to rulings and how to examine witnesses without any training, but she can’t stand in his way.
“This court has warned Mr. Brooks what he’s getting into,” Dorow said.
According to prosecutors and investigators, Brooks drove his SUV through a Christmas parade in downtown Waukesha on Nov. 21. He refused commands to stop and kept driving, running people down, even as police officers shot at his vehicle, according to a criminal complaint.
He would face life in prison if convicted of any of the homicide charges. He faces 71 additional counts, including 61 counts of felony reckless endangerment. Each one of those counts carries a maximum sentence of 12 1/2 years in prison. Those counts also have a use-of-a-dangerous-weapon penalty enhancer, which would add another five years on each count.
He initially pleaded not guilty by reason of mental disease but withdrew that plea earlier this month and filed a motion seeking to represent himself. He told Dorow in court on Tuesday that his public defenders, Jeremy Perri and Anna Kees, haven’t explained the nature of the charges to him.
Dorow questioned him repeatedly about whether he understood what he was doing, to which Brooks insisted that he was aware but didn’t understand. Dorow grew so frustrated with him that she adjourned the hearing and continued it Wednesday.
Their exchanges were just as combative on Wednesday. Brooks constantly interrupted Dorow as she tried to explain the ramifications of his decision again and warned him that she likely wouldn’t assign an attorney to the case if he asks for one as the trial progresses.
The judge warned him that if he continues to interrupt during the trial, she will admonish him in front of the jury.
“That’s fine,” Brooks responded.
Nevada
Police arrest convicted Vegas bombmaker who escaped prison
LAS VEGAS (AP) — Police have arrested a convicted bombmaker who escaped from a Nevada prison where he was serving a life sentence for a deadly 2007 explosion outside a Las Vegas Strip, authorities said.
Las Vegas police said they received information Wednesday night that a person matching the description of Porfirio Duarte-Herrera was in the area. Officers took the man into custody, confirmed he was Duarte-Herrera and arrested him, the department said in a statement.
Additional information wasn’t immediately released by Las Vegas police.
Gov. Steve Sisolak had earlier ordered an investigation into the escape after he said late Tuesday his office learned the escapee had been missing from the medium-security prison since early in the weekend.
Officials didn’t realize until Tuesday morning that Duarte-Herrera, 42, was missing during a head count at Southern Desert Correctional Center near Las Vegas.
Duarte-Herrera, from Nicaragua, was convicted in 2010 of killing a hot dog stand vendor using a motion-activated bomb in a coffee cup atop a car parked at the Luxor hotel-casino.
Records show his co-defendant, Omar Rueda-Denvers, remained in custody. The 47-year-old from Guatemala is serving a life sentence at a different Nevada prison for murder, attempted murder, explosives and other charges.
A Clark County District Court jury spared both men from the death penalty in the slaying of Willebaldo Dorantes Antonio, whom prosecutors identified as the boyfriend of Rueda-Denvers’ ex-girlfriend.
Prosecutors said jealousy was the motive for the attack on the top deck of a two-story parking structure. The blast initially raised fears of a terrorist attack on the Strip.
Washington
Fewer people seek U.S. unemployment aid amid solid hiring
WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of Americans filing for jobless benefits dropped last week, a sign that few companies are cutting jobs despite high inflation and a weak economy.
Applications for unemployment benefits for the week ending Sept. 24 fell by 16,000 to 193,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. That is the lowest level of unemployment claims since April. Last week’s number was revised down by 4,000 to 209,000.
Jobless aid applications generally reflect layoffs. The current figures are very low historically and suggest Americans are benefiting from an unusually high level of job security. A year ago this week, 376,000 people applied for benefits.
The economy shrank in the first half of the year, the government said in a separate report Thursday on gross domestic product, the broadest measure of the economy’s output.
Yet employers, who have struggled to rehire after laying off 22 million workers at the height of the pandemic, are still looking to fill millions of open jobs. There are currently roughly two open positions for every unemployed worker, near a record high.
With companies desperate for workers, they are much more likely to hold onto their current staff.
Employers are also offering higher pay and benefits to attract and keep employees. Those higher salaries are contributing to inflation pressures.
The Federal Reserve is aiming to bring down inflation by rapidly raising its key interest rate, which is currently in a range of 3% to 3.25%. A little more than six months ago, that rate was near zero. The sharp rate hikes have pushed up mortgage rates and other borrowing costs. The Fed hopes that higher interest rates will slow borrowing and spending and drive inflation down towards its 2% target.
Fed officials are increasingly warning that the unemployment rate will likely have to rise as part of their fight against rising prices. If the number of unemployment claims drops, as it did last week, it suggests the Fed may have to raise rates even higher than it plans to slow the economy.
