Infowars host found liable in Sandy Hook defamation suits
Infowars host and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones was found liable Monday for damages in lawsuits brought by parents of children killed in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting over Jones’ claims that the massacre was a hoax.
Judge Barbara Bellis took the rare step of defaulting Jones in the defamation lawsuits for his and his companies’ “failure to produce critical material information that the plaintiffs needed to prove their claims.”
The default means the judge found in favor of the parents and will hold a hearing on how much damages he should pay.
Lawyers for the parents claimed Jones and his companies, including Infowars and Free Speech Systems, violated court rules by failing to turn over documents to them, including internal company documents showing how, and if, Jones and Infowars profited from talking about the school shooting and other mass shootings.
A message seeking comment was sent to Jones’ lawyers. They have denied violating court rules on document disclosure and have asked that Bellis be removed from the case, alleging she has not been impartial.
Shortly after the judge’s decision, Jones went on the air on his show to deride the legal process surrounding the case.
The ruling has the same outcome as a jury determining the case in favor of the families. The hearing on damages before a jury is expected next year.
Twenty first-graders and six educators were killed in the December 2012 shooting. The gunman, Adam Lanza, 20, killed his mother at their Newtown home before the shooting, and killed himself at the school, officials said.
The shooting was portrayed on Infowars as a hoax involving actors aimed at increasing gun control. Jones has since acknowledged the school shooting did occur. Families of the victims said they have been subjected to harassment and death threats from Jones’ followers because of the conspiracy pushed on Infowars. They sued Jones and his companies for defamation and infliction of emotional distress.