What we know in the Alex Jones, Sandy Hook case
Families of the victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook shooting were ‘grateful’ in November after a Connecticut Superior Court judge ruled in their favor over a defamation lawsuit brought against Alex Jones.
Now, they are skeptical over how Jones will cover the damages a jury must determine they deserve. The families’ attorneys have asked the judge to find Jones in contempt of court.
For the second day in a row, Jones failed to comply on Thursday with a court order requiring his deposition in a successful defamation lawsuit brought by families of Sandy Hook shooting victims.
Now, attorneys for the families say they are frustrated as the defendant seems to be dodging his depositions scheduled as part of a jury trial to decide damages.
What we know
After a back and forth between the plaintiffs and the defense, plans for the deposition were pushed to this week with Jones’s attorneys agreeing for him to sit, in-person, for questioning sessions on Wednesday and Thursday of this week.
Jones didn’t appear for either date.
The first signs of scheduling trouble came on Monday, March 21, when attorneys representing the conspiracy-theory-pedaling personality filed a motion requesting him to be excused from the deposition as a result of unnamed “medical conditions.”
The request cited testimony from Dr. Benjamin Marble who, according to court documents, appeared on Jones’ show on Monday and upon meeting the Infowars host, “immediately advised [him] to go to an emergency room or call 911.”
The doctor added, according to court filings, that, “after Mr. Jones refused, the physician advised him to stay home, which Mr. Jones did not do,”
He did not stay home, but Jones did, allegedly, visit with a doctor to get a second opinion on his condition. Later that evening, attorneys for Jones produced an additional doctor’s note stemming from the second opinion.
Signed by Dr. Amy Offutt, the redacted five sentence note cites a recommendation made to Jones that he “not attend court proceedings for now,” after assessing his unnamed condition.
“We started a comprehensive medical evaluation, and he has labs that are pending to assess his [redacted] status,” Offutt wrote to the court. “I also gave him ER precautions if he develops escalating symptoms.”
According to her website, Ouffutt is an “extensively trained integrative medicine physician” based in Marble Falls, Texas, who was, “recently appointed by Governor Greg Abbott to the Pediatric Acute-Onset Neuropsychiatric Syndrome Advisory Council.”
Her practice provides consultation and treatment to patients for chronic pain, offering yoga and other services including, “ozone therapies” and “IV nutritional therapies.”
The families’ attorney on Wednesday had requested a bench warrant if Jones didn’t show up Thursday. But on Friday, they requested he be held in contempt of court for skipping out on the depositions, asking for him to pay escalating fees beginning at $25,000 per day and to be incarcerated until he sits his deposition.
What we don’t know
Bellis has sided with the families’ attorney in recent motions, ordering Jones to appear for his deposition despite the doctors’ notes saying he should stay home. It’s unclear how she or Jones’ attorneys will respond to the request for Jones to be considered in contempt of court.
At a scheduling hearing set for March 30, the court may decide what leverage, if any, will be held over Jones.