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- BBC News World
Updated 5 hours
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Spreading a conspiracy theory for years is going to cost Alex Jones, one of the most prominent voices of harsh conservatism in the United States, a millionaire sum.
A jury found culpable a Jones to defame to the parents of the victims of the 2012 school shooting Sandy Hookin which 20 children and 6 adults died.
Among the minors who died was Jesse Lewis, de 6 yearswhose parents, Scarlett Lewis and Neil Heslinfiled the lawsuit against Jones in a Texas court.
The presenter must pay US$4.1 million for defamation, plus another $45.2 million for punitive damages, which may be awarded to punish a defendant for reckless, negligent, or scandalous behavior, or to deter future such acts.
Jones argued for years that the shooting was a hoax organized by the government to strip Americans of the right to own guns. He also falsely claimed that the parents ofthe victims they were actually actors.
Lews and Heslin said they had been harassed and emotionally distressed because of the Jones conspiracy theory. They asked for a compensation of US$150 million.
A forensic psychiatrist testified that they both suffered from a “complex post-traumatic stress disorder” similar to that suffered by soldiers who were in action or victims of child abuse.
“We ask you to send a very, very simple message and that is: stop Alex Jones,” an attorney for the parents told the jury on Friday. “Stop monetizing misinformation and lies. Please.”
image source, Archyde.com
Jones has faced several lawsuits over his claims about the Sandy Hook case.
This is the first of three lawsuits against Jones brought by relatives of Sandy Hook victims.
The announcer had already lost a series of defamation cases filed by parents of the victims by not having documents or testimonies in his favor. But the one concluded this Friday is the first in which damages were determined by a jury.
your defense
Despite retracting his claims about the Sandy Hook shooting, Jones has continued to use his channel, Infowars, to attack the jury and Judge Maya Guerra Gamble in this case.
During the emotionally charged trial, Jones described the case as an attack on their rights to freedom of expression under the First Amendment of the Constitution.
“I admitted that I was wrong, I admitted that I made a mistake, I admitted that I followed misinformation, but it was not on purpose. I apologized to the families. And the jury understood that,” he said in a video on Thursday.
“I questioned the case because I saw abnormalities and others saw abnormalities,” he added, explaining that, for him, it was a case of “propaganda.”
image source, Archyde.com
The case against Jones was brought by Scarlett Lewis and Neil Heslin, the parents of 6-year-old Jesse Lewis.
Nevertheless, admitted that the murders in Sandy Hook were “100% real” and accused the media of not allowing him to retract his false claims.
He has also assured that he is in bankruptcydespite evidence that his companies made around $800,000 a day selling dietary supplements, gun paraphernalia and survival gear.
“Freedom of expression is free, but lies have to be paid for,” the families’ lawyers responded in their opening statements.
In her testimony, Lewis addressed Jones directly, saying, “Jesse was real…I’m a real mom.”
He went on to say that it was “unbelievable” to have to go through such a process.
“We have to beg you, not just beg you, punish you, to stop lying,” he continued. “It’s surreal what’s going on here.”
image source, Archyde.com
Jesse Lewis, 6, was one of the victims at Sandy Hook.
Heslin said Jones’s lies “tarnished the honor and legacy” of her son and said it has been nearly 10 years of “hell” since the shooting.
According to the parents’ lawyers, they hired private security for the trial out of fear that Jones’s supporters might try to harm them.
Prior to the decision, attorneys for Lewis and Heslin revealed that Jones’ attorney had inadvertently sent them the 2 year message history text from the presenter’s phone.
The messages could be of interest to the congressional panel investigating Last year’s riots at the Capitol from the United States.
The committee believes that Jones helped organize a demonstration that took place just before the riots.
Infowars’ parent company, Free Speech Systems LLC, filed for bankruptcy protection last week. The outlet has been banned by YouTube, Spotify and Twitter for spreading hate speech, but continues to operate.
Other conspiracies fueled by Jones say that the US government iscreating floods and tornadoes as “weather weapons” and that chemicals in drinking water are making frogs gay.
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