The Wisconsin Department of Justice has asked the state’s Court of Appeals to reject Darrell Brooks’ latest attempt to get an extension for his right to appeal or post-conviction relief.
DOJ Assistant Attorney General John Blimling said in a Jan. 23 response that Brooks, convicted in the death of six people and sentenced to six consecutive life terms for his attack during the 2021 Waukesha Christmas Parade, has offered no acceptable reason to explain his failure to file an appeal extension by the court’s Jan. 7 deadline.
In effect, Blimling is arguing that Brooks’ right to appeal has expired, asking the court to reaffirm its earlier order.
“Because Brooks has not met his burden of showing that reconsideration is warranted, this Court should deny his motion and stand on its previous order that no further extensions would be granted,” he said.
Brooks’ Dec. 23 motion claimed the court was influenced by “false statements” from an assistant warden, Rick Johnston, at South Dakota State Penitentiary in Sioux Falls about lockdowns tied to drug investigations at the prison. Officials there said the prison had been on lockdown only 17 days since May. Brooks said the lockdowns were more extensive, preventing him from accessing legal documents and equipment he needed to appeal his case.
Brooks also criticized Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul, who in an earlier court statement suggested Brooks was merely trying to delay progress by the court on its decision, as being “misinformed.”
Brooks further claimed there’s no proof he had received and accessed a flash drive containing all of his case information from his former attorney, Michael Covey, who certified in November that the data had been sent in May 2025 and verified as delivered.
In his response on behalf of the state, Blimling said Brooks’ claims of falsehoods and misinformation were vague and not backed by any proof, which he said should have been included in his motion. Brooks’ call for an evidentiary hearing to consider his claims was also not justified because of a lack of information, he added.
Beyond those points, Blimling said Brooks’ latest motion, dated Dec. 23 and filed Jan. 6, was also well beyond the 11-day window he had to ask the Court of Appeals to reconsider its Nov. 25 order. That order granted one more limited extension – Brooks’ 11th since early 2024 – for him to complete the process of filing his appeal.
“For that reason alone, this Court should enforce its prior order stating that Brooks would receive no further extensions and deny Brooks’ present motion as untimely,” Blimling said in his response.
The Court of Appeals, which in early November had first signaled its dissatisfaction with Brooks’ appeal progress, has not indicated when a decision on Brooks’ motion will occur. Based on previous decisions, a decision could come within a week of the latest response requested by the court.
Contact reporter Jim Riccioli at james.riccioli@jrn.com.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: DOJ opposes Darrell Brooks’ effort for appeal rights extension
Reporting by Jim Riccioli, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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