The man on trial for allegedly killing six people and injuring 62 others during a Christmas parade in Waukesha, Wisconsin, says he no longer identifies by his name – the latest in a string of odd remarks and disruptions he has made in court.
The 40-year-old man, who is not being named by The Daily Wire, is representing himself after he fired his attorneys just before the trial started. On Monday, the defendant began by questioning Waukesha Police Detective Thomas Casey, who was at the parade and tried to stop the vehicle that crashed into the crowd. During his questioning, the defendant asked Casey to describe a “disturbance” he heard just before the attack, which resulted in the following exchange:
Casey: I heard a horn beeping, and then a Ford Escape came through the parade route, and you drove past me and wouldn’t stop and you continued driving through the parade route.
Defendant: Who is you?
Casey: [Suspect’s name], the defendant seated at the table.
Defendant: Uh, let the record reflect that I do not identify by that name nor do I know anybody by that name.
Judge Dorow: The objection is noted.
This isn’t the first time the defendant has acted out in court – or even the first time he has denied his own name. In the days leading up to the trial, the defendant told the judge he did not recognize his name in court documents, WHBL reported.
The defendant is accused of driving his red Ford Escape into the crowd gathered to watch Waukesha’s annual Christmas parade on November 21, 2021, ramming into dozens of parade watchers and killing six, including an 8-year-old boy. The defendant faces 76 felony and misdemeanor charges, including six counts of first-degree intentional homicide, according to Courthouse News Service.
Even before denying his own name, the defendant stood up in court and apologized for his previous disruptions, which required him to be removed from the court every previous day of the trial.
“I want to stand up as a man and tell the whole court and you, your Honor, I want to apologize to the bailiffs that I want to apologize for my actions. Like I said, that’s not how I was raised. I come from a Christian background. My mother did not raise me that way,” the defendant said.
Previous disruptions include constantly interrupting the judge, removing his shirt during the trial livestream, taking off his shoe and threatening to throw it when officers were escorting him, and refusing to wear a suit as he had done during previous hearings.