More On: Darrell Brooks
Kamala Harris was expected to be in Chicago a day after the shooting at the Highland Park parade
After a court was chastised for setting a bond of $5 million for Waukesha SUV 'murderer' Darrell Brooks, GoFundMe has pulled the $5 million bail fundraising and says it will BAN all future attempts to gather money
Darrell Brooks, a black supremacist, rapped about being a 'terrorist' and called for violence against white people
GoFundMe has taken down a fundraising campaign for Darrell Brooks, the Waukesha, Wisconsin 'murderer' accused of plowing his red SUV into dozens of people during a holiday parade on Sunday, killing six people and injuring dozens more.
Brooks was arraigned in court on Tuesday, accused with five counts of murder.
Commissioner Kevin M. Costello of the Waukesha Court imposed bond at $5 million, which provoked outrage given Brooks' violent record, which includes felony convictions.
Brooks was free on $1,000 bond at the time of the Waukesha incident after being arrested earlier this month for allegedly attempting to drive over his child's mother with his automobile.
Someone identifying themselves as James Norton of Waukesha first created the GoFundMe campaign.
The GoFundMe page was initially posted by someone who identified themselves as James Norton of Waukesha
Brooks, 39, the driver of the SUV that crashed into the crowd Sunday, made his first appearance in court Tuesday
Brooks is the man who is allegedly seen in the photo above as he drove into the crowd of parade goers in Waukesha on Sunday
'On November 21st, 2021 our dear friend Darrell Brooks was arrested for allegedly driving his car into a parade, as someone who knows Darrell personally I can tell you that he would NEVER do such a thing and I know he is innocent of what he was charged with,' Norton wrote.
'Clearly there is more to the story the media is not telling us and I am seeking to raise the bail so Darrell can be released and speak his truth to his side of the story in this tragic situation that sees another black man behind bars in a purely political and racist trial.
'There is no excuse for this continued treatment of black Americans by prosecutors around the country, everyone must be presumed innocent until proven guilty and we ask that he be treated equally as anyone else in this country would be treated and he should be released until found guilty.'
The message ended with the hashtags #BLM, #IStandWithDarrell, #NoJusticeNoPeace, and #RacismIsReal.
On Wednesday, a GoFundMe spokeswoman told DailyMail.com that the crowdfunding page had broken the company's rules of service, and Norton had been barred from using the site.
'Misused fundraisers are extremely rare, and we treat all complaints with the utmost seriousness.' The spokeswoman stated, "Our staff collaborates with law enforcement to report problems and to help them in any investigations they consider appropriate."
After last year’s arrest of Kyle Rittenhouse, the Kenosha shooter who was acquitted of murder last week, GoFundMe removed several fundraisers that were started for his legal defense.
The company said that its terms of service ‘prohibit raising money for the legal defense of an alleged crime.’
After Rittenhouse’s acquittal last week, GoFundMe posted a blog post stating that any subsequent fundraisers ‘would not violate this policy.’
'A fundraiser to pay lawyers, cover legal expenses or to help with ongoing living expenses for a person acquitted of those charges could remain active as long as we determine it is not in violation of any of our other terms and, for example, the purpose is clearly stated and the correct beneficiary is added to the fundraiser,' according to the company.
At the time GoFundMe removed the fundraisers to help Rittenhouse last year, conservatives accused the firm of having a liberal bias.
