WATERBURY, Conn. (WTNH) — A jury has ruled that conspiracy theorist Alex Jones must pay a total of $965 million to the relatives of eight victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting and an FBI agent for spreading the lie that the 2012 shooting. fraud.
Twenty children and six adults died in the shooting on December 14, 2012. The defamation trial was held in a court in Waterbury, about 20 miles from Newtown, where the shooting took place.
The lawsuit accuses Jones and Infowars’ parent company, Free Speech Systems, of using the mass shooting to build its audience and make millions of dollars.
The process involved tearful testimonies from parents and siblings to victims who told how they were threatened and harassed for years by people who believed the lies told on Jones’ show.
The trial began on September 13, and the jury began deliberating on October 6. On the third full day of deliberations, the six-judge jury reached a verdict.
What did the jury decide?
In November 2021, the judge found Jones and Free Speech Systems liable for default damages after Jones failed to cooperate with court rules on sharing evidence.
The jury was instructed to arrive at two compensatory damages amounts for each plaintiff: one amount for defamation damages and another for emotional distress damages. Jurors also decided whether Jones should pay punitive damages. The judge will determine the amounts later.
Here’s a breakdown of what the jury decided each plaintiff should receive in general damages:
- Robert “Robbie” Parkerfather of 6-year-old Emily Parker: 120 million dollars
- William Aldenberg, FBI Agent and First Responder: 90 million dollars
- Ian Hockley, father of 6-year-old Dylan Hockley: $81.6 million
- Erica Lafferty, daughter of school principal Dawn Hochsprung: 76 million dollars
- Nicole Hockley, mother of 6-year-old Dylan Hockley: $73.6 million
- Jillian Soto-Marino, sister of teacher Victoria Soto: $68.8 million
- Carly Soto-Parisi, sister of teacher Victoria Soto: 66 million dollars
- Mark Barden, father of 7-year-old Daniel Barden: $57.6 million
- Carlos Matthew Soto, brother of teacher Victoria Soto: $57.6 million
- David Wheeler, father of 6-year-old Ben Wheeler: $55 million
- Francine Wheeler, mother of 6-year-old Ben Wheeler: $54 million
- Jennifer Hensel, for the estate of Jeremy Richman and the father who died by suicide of 6-year-old Avielle Richman: 52 million dollars
- Donna Soto, mother of teacher Victoria Soto: 48 million dollars
- William Scherlachhusband of 56-year-old school psychologist Mary Scherlach: $36 million
- Jacqueline Barden, mother of 7-year-old Daniel Barden: 28.8 dollars million
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Erica Lafferty, daughter of Sandy Hook Principal Dawn Hochsprung, speaks to the media after a jury returned a $965 million verdict in the defamation trial of Alex Jones, in Waterbury, Conn., Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022. (AP Photo/ Brian Woolston) -
Nicole Hockley, whose son Dylan was one of the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, speaks to the media after a jury returned a $965 million verdict in the defamation trial of Alex Jones, in Waterbury, Conn., Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022 (AP Photo/Bryan Woolston) -
Francine Wheeler, mother of Ben, one of the victims of the Sandy Hook school shooting, speaks to the media after a jury returned a $965 million verdict in the defamation trial of Alex Jones, in Waterbury, Conn., Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022 (AP Photo/Bryan Woolston) -
Bill Scherlach, husband of Mary, one of the victims of the Sandy Hook school shooting, speaks to the media after a jury returned a $965 million verdict in the defamation trial of Alex Jones, in Waterbury, Conn., Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022 (AP Photo/Bryan Woolston) -
Attorney Chris Mathie speaks to the media after a jury returned a $965 million verdict in the defamation trial of Alex Jones, in Waterbury, Conn., Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022. (AP Photo/Bryan Woolston) -
Attorneys representing the families of victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary shooting speak to the media after a jury returned a $965 million verdict in the defamation trial of Alex Jones, in Waterbury, Conn., Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022. (AP Photo /Bryan Woolston) -
Standing with the plaintiffs, attorney Josh Koskoff speaks to the media after a jury returned a $965 million verdict in the defamation trial of Alex Jones, in Waterbury, Conn., Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022. (AP Photo/Bryan Woolston) -
Norm Pattis, the attorney for Infowars founder Alex Jones, speaks to the media after a jury returned a $965 million verdict in his client’s defamation trial, in Waterbury, Conn., Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022. (AP Photo/Bryan Woolston) -
Plaintiff William Scherlach, left, hugs attorney Josh Koskoff, while plaintiff Nicole Hockley hugs attorney Chris Mattei after the jury’s verdict and monetary awards were read in the defamation trial of Alex Jones in Superior Court, Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022, in Waterbury, Connecticut. A six-person jury reached a verdict Wednesday saying Jones must pay $965 million to 15 plaintiffs who were harmed by his lies about the Sandy Hook school massacre. Jones and his company were found liable for damages last year. (Brian A. Pounds/Hearst Connecticut Media via AP, Pool) -
Plaintiffs Robbie Parker, left, and Nicole Hockley embrace after the jury verdicts on damages in the defamation trial against Alex Jones were read in Superior Court, Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022, in Waterbury, Connecticut. A six-judge jury reached the verdict Wednesday, saying Jones must pay $965 million to 15 plaintiffs who were harmed by his lies about the Sandy Hook school massacre. Jones and his company were found liable for damages last year. (Brian A. Pounds/Hearst Connecticut Media via AP, Pool) -
Plaintiffs Nicole Hockley, left, and Erica Lafferty embrace after the jury’s verdict and monetary awards were read in the defamation trial of Alex Jones in Superior Court, Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022, in Waterbury, Connecticut. A six-judge jury reached a verdict Wednesday saying Jones must pay $965 million to 15 plaintiffs who were harmed by his lies about the Sandy Hook school massacre. Jones and his company were found liable for damages last year. (Brian A. Pounds/Hearst Connecticut Media via AP, Pool) -
Plaintiff Francine Wheeler wipes away a tear as her jury verdict is read along with her fellow plaintiffs in the defamation trial of Alex Jones in Superior Court, Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022, in Waterbury, Connecticut. A six-judge jury ruled on Wednesday that Jones must pay $965 million to 15 plaintiffs who were harmed by his lies about the Sandy Hook school massacre. Jones and his company were found liable for damages last year. (Brian A. Pounds/Hearst Connecticut Media via AP, Pool) -
Erica Lafferty, daughter of deceased Sandy Hook Elementary Principal Dawn Hochsprung, listens to a replay of recorded testimony from fellow plaintiff Bill Scherlach played for the jury during the defamation trial of Alex Jones in Superior Court, Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022. in Waterbury, Connecticut. A six-person jury reached a verdict on Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022, saying Jones must pay $965 million to 15 plaintiffs who were harmed by his lies about the Sandy Hook school massacre. Jones and his company were found liable for damages last year. (Brian A. Pounds/Hearst Connecticut Media via AP, Pool) -
Plaintiff Robbie Parker puts his head in his hands and fellow plaintiffs William Scherlach, left, and Francine Wheeler offer emotional support as the jury’s verdicts in the libel trial of Alex Jones are read in the Supreme Court, Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022, at Waterbury, Connecticut. A six-person jury reached the verdict Wednesday, saying Jones must pay $965 million to 15 plaintiffs harmed by his lies about the Sandy Hook school massacre. Jones and his company were found liable for damages last year. (Brian A. Pounds/Hearst Connecticut Media via AP, Pool)
Reaction to the jury’s decision
Robbie Parker, who lost his 6-year-old daughter, told a Connecticut court he was proud that “we were able to pull this off, just to tell the truth.”
“And it shouldn’t be that hard and it shouldn’t be that scary,” he added in a broken voice.
Erica Lafferty, the daughter of slain Sandy Hook principal Dawn Hochsprung, testified that people sent rape threats to her home.
“I wish after today I could just be a daughter grieving her mother and stop worrying about conspiracy theorists,” Lafferty told the court. But she predicted that Jones’ “hatred, lies and conspiracy theories will follow me and my family for the rest of our days.”
For plaintiff William Scherlach, who lost his wife in the shooting, the verdict “shows that the Internet is not the wild, wild west and that your actions have consequences.”
Nicole Hockley, the mother of 6-year-old Dylan Hockley, said she was “grateful” to the jury “for listening to us” and listening.
“It sends the right message that people are good and that good prevails,” she added. “Thank you for restoring my faith in such people”
Christopher Mattei, a lawyer for the families of Sandy Hook victims, praised the “historic verdict.”
“For over a month in this courthouse, this jury has witnessed Alex Jones’ 10-year attack on the families who stand behind me. An attack that made him very rich, an attack that exploited the fears and discontent of his audience, an attack that targeted these families with the lie that they were frauds,” Mattei said.
Norm Pattis, Jones’ defense attorney, said he plans to appeal the jury’s decision.
“We disagree with the basis of the default, we disagree with the court’s rulings on the evidence,” Pattis said. “In more than 200 trials over the course of my career, I’ve never seen a trial like this.”
What next?
It’s unclear how much of the judgment Jones can afford to pay.
In April, awarded by a Texas jury Scarlett Lewis and Neil Heslin, parents of Jesse Lewis, nearly $50 million in damages.
During the trial in Texas, he testified that he could not afford a judgment of more than $2 million. Free Speech Systems has filed for bankruptcy protection.
Jones now faces a third trial in Texas later this year in a lawsuit filed by the parents of another child killed in the shooting.
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The Associated Press contributed to this report.
https://www.wkrg.com/national/jury-says-alex-jones-should-pay-965m-in-damages-to-sandy-hook-families-fbi-agent/
