Jury Tells Alex Jones To Pay Parents Of Sandy Hook Victims $4M+

Austin, Texas

On Thursday, a Texas jury ordered conspiracy theorist Alex Jones to pay more than $4 million — a far cry from the $150 million sought — to the parents of a 6-year-old boy killed in the Sandy Hook massacre. , it was the first time Infowars executives faced financial liability for repeatedly claiming that the deadliest school shooting in American history was a hoax.

An Austin jury has yet to decide how much to pay Infowars executives Neil Heslin and Scarlett Lewis, whose son Jesse Lewis was among the 20 children and six educators killed in the 2012 Newtown, Connecticut, attacks.

The parents sought at least $150 million in damages for intentional defamation and emotional distress. Attorney Mr. Jones asked the jury to limit damages to $8 - one dollar for each compensatory fee they consider - and Mr. Jones. Jones himself said that any price over $2 million "would drown us."

It is likely that this will not be the final judgment against Mr. Jones - who is not in court - claimed the attacks were carried out to improve gun control. A Connecticut judge ruled against him in a similar lawsuit filed by another victim's family and an FBI agent who worked on the case. He also faces another trial in Austin.

The chief attorney Mr. Jones, Andino Reynal, nodded to his attorney before leaving the courtroom. He did not want to comment on the decision.

Outside court, the plaintiffs' lawyer Mark Bankston insisted that the $4.11 million was not disappointing, and Mr. Jones.

The jury will return on Friday. Jones and his company's finances.

In a video posted on his website late Thursday, Mr. Jones considered the small prize a big win.

"I admit I was wrong. I admit it was a mistake. I admit that I followed wrong information, but not on purpose. I apologize to the family. And the jury understands this. What I did to my family was wrong. But I didn't mean it," he said.

The award "is more money than me and my company, but we will work to pay it back," Jones said.

Bankston suggested that any declaration of victory might be premature.

"We are not done yet," says Mr. Bankston. "We knew going into the case that we had to shoot for the moon so that the jury understood that we were serious and passionate. From tomorrow he will have more."

The total amount given in this case can serve as a reference for other lawsuits against Mr. Jones, highlighting the financial threat he faces. Infowars, which has been banned by YouTube, Spotify and Twitter for hate speech, also raises new questions about its ability to continue operating, although the company's finances are unclear.

Jones, who described the case as an attack on his First Amendment rights, admitted during the trial that the attack was "100% true" and that he was wrong to lie about it. But Mr. Heslin and Mrs. Lewis told the jury that an apology was not enough and Mr. Jones paid for the years of suffering he caused them and the rest of the Sandy Hook family.

The parents testified Tuesday how they endured a decade of trauma from their son's murder and its aftermath: shots fired at home, online and phone threats and street harassment by strangers. It is said that the threats and harassment were all made by Mr. Jones and his conspiracy theories spread to his followers through the Infowars website.

Barry Covert, a First Amendment attorney in Buffalo, New York, who was not involved in the Jones case, said the $4 million award was less than he expected given the evidence and testimony.

"But I don't think Jones can take that as a victory," he added. "The bottom line is that $4 million is significant, although we would have thought it would be a little bit higher."

Judges often refuse to award damages after determining the amount of damages. But when they choose to do so, the fine amount is often higher, Mr. in secret He said he expected the parents' lawyer to argue that the jury should send the message that no one benefits from defamation.

"They want the jury to send the message that you can't make a quarter of a billion by injuring someone and you're only going to get damages in court," says Mr. in secret

Mr. Jones was the only witness to testify in his own defense and attended the trial only occasionally on his own schedule. And the prosecutors' lawyers attacked him violently during the interrogation, Mr. Jones accused him of lying about Sandy Hook for years and trying to hide evidence, including text messages and emails. It also includes an internal message sent by an Infowars employee saying, "This Sandy Hook thing is killing us."

At one point Mr. Jones was told that his lawyer Mr. Mr Bankston on the mobile for the past two years. Jones. Bankston said in court Thursday that the Jan. 6 U.S. House of Representatives committee investigating the 2021 attacks on the U.S. Capitol had requested the documents and intended to comply.

And shortly after Mr. "I don't use e-mail," said Mr. Jones said. Jones was shown one of his address and another of an Infowars official who said Mr. Jones said the company sells $800,000 worth of products a day, which would be nearly $300 million a year.

Mr. Jones' media company Free Speech Systems, which is Infowars' parent company, filed for bankruptcy during the two-week trial.

This story was reported by the Associated Press. AP writer Michael Tarm in Chicago contributed to this report.

Alex Jones responds to his text message when confronted with email