Alex Jones has officially requested the U.S. Supreme Court to hear his appeal concerning a $1.4 billion judgment levied against him by a Connecticut jury. These rulings grew out of Jones’ complaints. He’s long claimed that the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting was fake, staged by crisis actors. We filed this request on Friday and the court ordered it released on Tuesday.
The Connecticut jury’s decision followed emotional testimonies from relatives of the Sandy Hook victims, who shared their experiences of harassment and threats from individuals identifying themselves as Jones’ followers. These threats were the same as death and rape threats, in-person harassment of victims’ families and online harassment as abusive social media comments towards victims’ families.
Jones is claiming that he did not get a fair trial. He argues that there wasn’t sufficient evidence linking him to the conduct of his supporters. His legal team claims the Connecticut judge should not have made a default ruling against him for “trivial” reasons. First, they brag that he was in full compliance with all orders of the court for most of the case.
In December, Connecticut’s mid-level appellate court upheld almost every facet of the $1.4 billion judgment. Amazingly, they only cut it by $150 million. In August 2022, a court ruled against Jones, handing down an initial $49 million judgment. This ruling was included in a separate case that imposed $473 million in punitive damages against Jones and his company, Free Speech Systems.
Jones’ cash crisis could hardly be more grave, as he declared bankruptcy in late 2022. In late November, an auction was held to liquidate Infowars’ assets. The Onion was the winning bidder, assisting in covering the defamation judgments.
Jones’ petition argues that the $1.4 billion judgment constitutes cruel and unusual punishment in violation of the Eighth Amendment. His lawyers continue to argue that state courts have no jurisdiction over assigning liability based only on sanctions like default judgments. They contend that permitting these kinds of judgments would “chill the reporting of news.” This chill effect may cause even the most diligent journalists and news organizations to self-censor, avoiding the possibility of lawsuits altogether.
Christopher Mattei, the attorney for the Sandy Hook families, sounded doubtful about Jones’ appeal.
“There is no legitimate basis for the U.S. Supreme Court to accept this last gasp from Alex Jones and we will oppose it in due course.” – Christopher Mattei
The continuing legal fights are making all the news. That’s particularly so given Jones’ history of having previously claimed the Sandy Hook shooting was “100% real.” Although this admission is now made, he has still suffered extreme legal consequences for once questioning the likely authenticity of the tragedy.
As Jones navigates this complex legal landscape, he remains embroiled in multiple lawsuits tied to his controversial statements and their impact on the victims’ families. The appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court represents a crucial step in his efforts to challenge the substantial financial penalties imposed upon him.
