Alex Jones Ordered to Pay $965 Million to Sandy Hook Victims’ Families
Summary from the AllSides News Team
Key Facts: A Connecticut jury concluded that Alex Jones, host of InfoWars, should pay $965 million in defamation retribution to the family members of those killed in the Sandy Hook massacre in 2012. The defamation suit came from a number of statements made by Jones in the aftermath of the shooting, including claims that the massacre was a hoax concocted to restrict gun rights.
Key Quote: Speaking to reporters after the verdict announcement, plaintiff attorney Christopher Mattei stated “the jury’s verdict is a testament to that courage, in a resounding affirmation that people of goodwill, dedicated to the truth, mindful of their responsibilities to their fellow citizens can come together to protect the innocent, to reveal lies masquerading as truth, and to set right a historic wrong.”
For Context: In 2012, Adam Lanza killed 26 people at Sandy Hook Elementary School before committing suicide. This is the second defamation suit against Jones over false claims about the Sandy Hook massacre. In August, a Texas jury ordered Jones to pay $49.3 million in damages to a different family who lost a child in the shooting. Jones is expected to face a third defamation suit, again in Texas.
How the Media Covered It: The decision was covered across the board evenly, although left and center outlets featured the story more prominently on their homepages. Jones, who was not present in the court, live-streamed the verdict announcement on his show.
Featured Coverage of this Story
From the Left
Alex Jones ordered to pay $965 million in Sandy Hook defamation trial
A Connecticut jury awarded nearly $1 billion in damages to 15 plaintiffs defamed by conspiracy theorist Alex Jones when the Infowars host called the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting a hoax staged by actors following a script written by the government to build support for gun control.
With the plaintiffs sobbing in the gallery, the clerk read out the verdict in which the jury decided compensatory damages for both slander and for emotional distress.
The damages awarded Wednesday total $965 million -- far exceeding the award in a prior...
From the Right
Alex Jones ordered to pay nearly $1 billion to families of Sandy Hook massacre victims
A Connecticut jury ordered Alex Jones to pay nearly $1 billion to families of the victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting for spreading lies about the massacre.
Six adults and 20 children were killed during the shooting in December 2012 in Newtown, Connecticut, just 20 miles away from where victims' families gave tearful testimony in Waterbury Superior Court during the trial.
Jones repeatedly told millions of listeners on his Infowars show that the shooting was a hoax and the victims were crisis actors hired as part of...
From the Center
Alex Jones cheers on air as judge reads $965 million defamation suit verdict
Live on his show Wednesday, Infowars host Alex Jones mocked a jury ordering him to pay $965 million in a defamation suit brought by Sandy Hook families, cheering as the judge listed off millions in damages for each count.
“Get those numbers up,” Jones said after one count was read, at times giving a thumbs up and raising his hand in the air.
A Connecticut jury on Wednesday ordered Jones to pay the damages to the family of victims of the 2012 Newtown, Conn., school shooting for repeatedly claiming the...
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