Waukesha strong: City glows blue following Darrell Brooks' guilty verdict

WAUKESHA, Wis. — Waukesha glowed blue overnight after a verdict came in and the trial of Darrell Brooks reached its end.

Sentencing is next on the agenda, with Judge Jennifer Dorow scheduling Monday as the next time Brooks will be back in court to set up that date.

The verdict came down early Wednesday morning with the jury deliberating for just over three hours before finding Brooks guilty on all 76 counts, including homicide, in the Waukesha Christmas parade attack. Throughout the three-and-a-half-week trial, the process was everything but smooth with Brooks' repeated outbursts and being sent to another courtroom, as the judge attempted to keep the trial moving on schedule. But yesterday, during the reading of the verdicts, Brooks showed not anger, but defeat.

Brooks does have the opportunity to appeal the convictions and if he were to try, he would have to file a notice of appeal with the clerk of the Waukesha County court. The average time for the appeal process from start to finish is about 10 months.

Here are the six people who lost their lives in the parade tragedy: Bill Hospel, Leanne Owen, Jane Kulich, Ginny Sorenson, Tamara Durand, and the youngest, Jackson Sparks.

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Sparks' dad Aaron Sparks shared this tribute last night on Twitter. You can see little Jackson's family had his baseball jersey framed along with two pictures of him in his baseball gear.

The tweet reads quote: "Today was a hard day, but a good day. This one is for you my sweet little boy! Keep hittin homers in heaven till we meet again."

As the Waukesha community had to relive the parade tragedy over the last few weeks, we wanted to take a look back, and forward, at how the community has come together to be Waukesha strong.

From the flicker of blue lights to moments of healing and spreading Christmas cheer, it was the family donating their time and skills selling ornaments to benefit the community fund.

A store served as a safe haven and a store donated proceeds from sales. These are the moments over the last eleven months we've seen Waukesha strong embodied in the darkest of times.

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Now we look forward to this year's Christmas parade, just over a month away.

Norman Bruce, a co-owner of Martha Merrell's Books and Toys, is excited about the event.

"I'm looking for people to embrace and come and find the Christmas spirit. That's exactly what I'm looking for. It's kind of like the polar express, do you still hear the bell? Do you still hear the spirit of Christmas?"

If you want to be a part of this year's parade there's still time to sign up as either a participant or a volunteer.

As the community moves forward, TMJ4 is honored to be broadcasting this year's Waukesha Christmas parade. Susan Kim and Steve Chamraz will be your hosts. You can watch it live on Sunday, Dec. 4, starting at 4 p.m.

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