美国国家公共电台 NPR--Jury selection to begin in last year's deadly Christmas parade in Wisconsin

Jury selection to begin in last year's deadly Christmas parade in Wisconsin

Transcript¹

On Monday jury selection begins in the Waukesha Christmas Parade murder trial. The suspect is accused of killing² six people after driving an SUV through last year's parade.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Jury selection begins today for a man accused of driving into a Christmas parade, killing six people in Waukesha, Wis. Darrell Brooks³ plans to represent himself in court. Here's Chuck Quirmbach of our member station WUWM.

CHUCK QUIRMBACH, BYLINE⁴: Waukesha is 20 miles west of Milwaukee. It's downtown, a trendy area of restaurants and antique shops. On Main Street, artist Thomas Beukes (ph) sits in a chair painting, not far from where he and his wife stood last November as they joined thousands watching the city's annual Christmas parade.

THOMAS BEUKES: We saw this red car coming at us about 50 miles an hour. And I'm thinking, he's going too fast for the curve. I was thinking, what am I going to do, jump in these bushes?

QUIRMBACH: The driver turned the vehicle and Beukes was unscathed. Many others were not as fortunate. Police say the red SUV hit and killed six parade marchers and injured more than 60 along the route. Authorities charged Darrell Brooks, a 40-year-old man from Milwaukee, with more than 70 offenses⁵, including six counts of first-degree intentional⁶ homicide. Prosecutors⁷ allege⁸ Brooks was behind the wheel, entering the parade after a domestic disturbance⁹ and barreling past police officers who tried to stop the vehicle.

Initially¹⁰, Brooks pled not guilty, adding later by reason of mental disease or defect. Then he dropped the insanity¹¹ defense¹². And just last week, the trial judge granted Brooks' request to represent himself, releasing two public defenders¹³ who had been assigned. Even so, Judge Jennifer Dorow warned Brooks during a couple of contentious¹⁴ hearings about the challenges he would face. She said many witnesses are scheduled to testify, that there's a lot of evidence, including videos of the parade, and that Waukesha County prosecutors have a lot of resources. Here's how Brooks replied.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

DARRELL BROOKS: Doesn't make me flinch¹⁵ one bit.

QUIRMBACH: Brooks may be confident, but Milwaukee defense lawyer Julius Kim says there are good reasons why defendants¹⁷ don't typically represent themselves during a homicide trial.

JULIUS KIM: What it comes down to is that by not being an attorney, Mr. Brooks is not going to know what he doesn't know. He's not going to know what questions may be objectionable or if the state asks an improper¹⁸ question. He's not going to know how to properly present evidence at a trial. There are also going to be some logistical issues that I think he's going to have to overcome.

QUIRMBACH: Kim says Brooks representing himself also puts extra pressure on the judge, who'll have to quickly decide what information she'll provide to the defendant¹⁶. The trial is expected to last two weeks or longer. That doesn't please Waukesha Mayor Shawn Reilly. He says survivors¹⁹ of the tragedy that occurred during the Christmas parade are still trying to heal.

SHAWN REILLY: A lot of them are going to have to testify. And a lot of them who aren't even involved in the trial are going to see it in the newspapers, hear it on the radio, watch it on TV and have to listen to that person.

QUIRMBACH: The mayor and others here say that as the trial goes on, they want the victims' families to feel community support now and in the future. A citizens commission recently approved the concept for a memorial to be located in a city park.

For NPR News, I'm Chuck Quirmbach in Waukesha, Wis.

(SOUNDBITE OF SLEEP DEALER'S "THE WAY HOME")

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

3 brooks   

n.小溪( brook的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Brooks gave the business when Haas caught him with his watch. 哈斯抓到偷他的手表的布鲁克斯时，狠狠地揍了他一顿。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Ade and Brooks exchanged blows yesterday and they were severely punished today. 艾德和布鲁克斯昨天打起来了，今天他们受到严厉的惩罚。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

5 offenses   

n.进攻( offense的名词复数 )；（球队的）前锋；进攻方法；攻势

参考例句：

• It's wrong of you to take the child to task for such trifling offenses. 因这类小毛病责备那孩子是你的不对。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Thus, Congress cannot remove an executive official except for impeachable offenses. 因此，除非有可弹劾的行为，否则国会不能罢免行政官员。 来自英汉非文学 - 行政法

6 intentional   

adj.故意的，有意（识）的

参考例句：

• Let me assure you that it was not intentional.我向你保证那不是故意的。
• His insult was intentional.他的侮辱是有意的。

7 prosecutors   

检举人( prosecutor的名词复数 )； 告发人； 起诉人； 公诉人

参考例句：

• In some places,public prosecutors are elected rather than appointed. 在有些地方，检察官是经选举而非任命产生的。 来自口语例句
• You've been summoned to the Prosecutors' Office, 2 days later. 你在两天以后被宣到了检察官的办公室。

8 allege   

vt.宣称，申述，主张，断言

参考例句：

• The newspaper reporters allege that the man was murdered but they have given no proof.新闻记者们宣称这个男人是被谋杀的，但他们没提出证据。
• Students occasionally allege illness as the reason for absence.学生时不时会称病缺课。

9 disturbance   

n.动乱，骚动；打扰，干扰；(身心)失调

参考例句：

• He is suffering an emotional disturbance.他的情绪受到了困扰。
• You can work in here without any disturbance.在这儿你可不受任何干扰地工作。

10 initially   

adv.最初，开始

参考例句：

• The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
• Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。

11 insanity   

n.疯狂，精神错乱；极端的愚蠢，荒唐

参考例句：

• In his defense he alleged temporary insanity.他伪称一时精神错乱，为自己辩解。
• He remained in his cell,and this visit only increased the belief in his insanity.他依旧还是住在他的地牢里，这次视察只是更加使人相信他是个疯子了。

12 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

13 defenders   

n.防御者( defender的名词复数 )；守卫者；保护者；辩护者

参考例句：

• The defenders were outnumbered and had to give in. 抵抗者寡不敌众，只能投降。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• After hard fighting,the defenders were still masters of the city. 守军经过奋战仍然控制着城市。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 contentious   

adj.好辩的，善争吵的

参考例句：

• She was really not of the contentious fighting sort.她委实不是好吵好闹的人。
• Since then they have tended to steer clear of contentious issues.从那时起，他们总想方设法避开有争议的问题。

15 flinch   

v.畏缩，退缩

参考例句：

• She won't flinch from speaking her mind.她不会讳言自己的想法。
• We will never flinch from difficulties.我们面对困难决不退缩。

16 defendant   

n.被告；adj.处于被告地位的

参考例句：

• The judge rejected a bribe from the defendant's family.法官拒收被告家属的贿赂。
• The defendant was borne down by the weight of evidence.有力的证据使被告认输了。

17 defendants   

被告( defendant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The courts heard that the six defendants had been coerced into making a confession. 法官审判时发现6位被告人曾被迫承认罪行。
• As in courts, the defendants are represented by legal counsel. 与法院相同，被告有辩护律师作为代表。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件

18 improper   

adj.不适当的，不合适的，不正确的，不合礼仪的

参考例句：

• Short trousers are improper at a dance.舞会上穿短裤不成体统。
• Laughing and joking are improper at a funeral.葬礼时大笑和开玩笑是不合适的。

19 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者