Infowars host and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones has been found liable for defamation after claiming the Sandy Hook school massacre was a “hoax,” a judge ruled Monday.
Connecticut Superior Court Judge Barbara Bellis ruled that Jones, 47, was liable by default after he was sued by parents of some of the children killed in the 2012 mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn.
The families said they had been subjected to harassment and death threats from Jones’ followers in the wake of his comments.
Jones had been peddling the conspiracy theory on his Infowars website that the shooting — which left 20 children and six school employees dead — was fabricated by gun control advocates.
Mentally ill killer Adam Lanza, 20, used a Bushmaster AR-15-style rifle in his rampage, leading to widespread debate about gun control in the country. Lanza committed suicide after the massacre.
The judge hasn’t yet determined how much in damages Jones will have pay to the families.
The default decision was handed down after Jones refused to turn over documents ordered by the court, including financial records, the judge said.
Lawyers for the plaintiffs had argued they needed the financial records to show if and how Jones and Infowars may have profited from talking about the school massacre and other mass shootings.
Jones’ lawyers denied violating court rules on document disclosure and pushed for the judge to be removed from the case, accusing her of being impartial.
The legal victory for the parents comes after a Texas judge issued similar rulings last month against Jones in three defamation lawsuits brought against him in his home state.
In that case, Jones was also found liable for damages by default for failing to turn over documents.
Families of eight of the school shooting victims filed lawsuits against Jones and Infowars in both Texas and Connecticut after he claimed the massacre was a hoax.
Jones has since claimed he doesn’t believe Sandy Hook was a hoax.
With Post wires
