The trial of admitted Norway mass killer Anders Behring Breivik was disrupted Friday when a brother of one of the 77 people killed in last summer's massacre threw a shoe at the defendant.
"You killed my brother. Go to hell! Go to hell," the spectator yelled as he threw the shoe, which missed Breivik but hit one of his defense lawyers, Vibeke Hein Baera, who was sitting closest to the courtroom spectators, according to a report from Views and News from Norway.
"If someone wants to throw something at me, do it at me while I'm entering or leaving, and not at my lawyer," Breivik said, according to a report from BBC News.
Police escorted the thrower, who was not identified, from the courtroom, but his actions were greeted by applause and shouts of "Bravo!" by others spectators, reports said.
Views and News, citing Norway's VG Nett, reported that the shoe thrower lives outside of Norway and had flown into Oslo on Wednesday so he could be at the trial when his brother's autopsy was presented.
Some reports said the shoe thrower was from Iraq, a country where the action is seen as a grave insult because the bottom of shoes are unclean.
Shoe throwing gained international attention in 2008 when an Iraqi reporter threw a shoe at then-U.S. President George Bush during a news conference in Baghdad.
Friday's incident occurred as a prosecutor was finishing up a presentation on autopsy reports of victims shot by Breivik on Utoya Island, where 69 people were killed while attending a Labor Party summer youth camp.
According to the BBC News report, Breivik said in court Friday that during that assault, "Someone threw an object at me and it hit me in the face" in an attempt to stop him. He did not say what the object was.
Defense attorney Baera, who was hit by the shoe Friday, later told Norwegian Broadcasting that as the trial was expected to last at least six more weeks, "I hope we can return to more dignified proceedings,” Views and News reported.
Breivik boasts of being an ultranationalist who killed his victims to fight multiculturalism in Norway.
© 2012 Cable News Network. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
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I wonder if the thrower was muslim??
Yep.
Horseshoe? no – too bad.
"If someone wants to throw something at me, do it at me while I'm entering or leaving, and not at my lawyer," Breivik said, according to a report from BBC News.
Preference noted. Someone ought to hurl a cue ball at his head while he's on his way out of the courtroom.
He's lucky that's all that has been thrown at him.
This is a lame news item.
Not too lame for you to read it.
And who's even lamer for commenting on it after reading it, then?
Export him back to Baghdad.
They need to enact a "stoning" death penalty, just for this guy. Let family's of the victims do the stoning, ...if they'd like.
Let he who is without the sin of murdering dozens of innocents throw the first shoe. Ladies and gentlemen, you may begin unlacing
why shoe always miss target...we should have "Practice throwing a shoe a at the jerk day"...
Why are shoes the preferred weapon against mass murderers?
The police should just have this man tied up and have him work to pay each of the family members for the funerals etc. When he is done paying the people back then he will have to continue to help them pay bills!
I accept the fairness of justice, etc. But why mass murderer looks great and feels better than any other in the courtroom? He fed, happy, smiling. And all that is called justice in this case – it is just a circus. So stupid...
They are wasting people time going to court! The man did the killings! Why does this guy get the chance to go to court so many times? What is the point? Put the people through more pain? This is stupid! The law,it is messed up! Why not just have him live with Pres Obama! They could help each
Other.
Next time, I hope someone throws acid at that smirking fascist creep.
Breivik and Bush – truely a display of disgust that has international support!