Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review an appeal regarding a $1.4 billion ruling against him by a Connecticut judge. This ruling stems from his claims about the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in 2012, which he suggested was staged by crisis actors.
Jones contends that the judge erred in assigning responsibility for defamation and emotional distress without giving him an opportunity to contest the allegations made by the victims’ families. They lost 20 first graders and six educators in the tragic shooting.
In late 2021, Judge Barbara Bellis issued a notable default ruling against Jones and his company because of his consistent noncompliance with court orders, particularly regarding evidence he failed to provide to the Sandy Hook families.
This default ruling effectively made him liable without the facts being reviewed in a trial, leading to a subsequent judgment where six judges from Waterbury awarded nearly $964 million to the plaintiffs in October 2022.
On top of that, there was an additional $473 million awarded in punitive damages related to Jones and his company, Free Speech Systems, which operates Infowars.
Jones submitted his request to the Supreme Court on a Friday, and the court acknowledged it by the following Tuesday.
His legal team—comprised of Ben Brooks, Shelby Jordan, and Alan Doutley—contends that state courts shouldn’t determine liability based solely on default judgments. They believe that the constitution and previous Supreme Court decisions necessitate that public figures, like the Sandy Hook families, must prove claims regarding defamation against figures such as Jones.
They also argue that the reasons for the Connecticut judge’s default ruling against Jones were insignificant and assert that he largely complied with the court’s directives.
Additionally, Jones’ lawyers invoke First Amendment protections, suggesting that his statements about the shooting being a hoax were merely opinions rather than defamatory assertions. Interestingly, Jones later remarked that he now believes the shooting was “100% real.”
The petition criticizes the media environment, noting the challenges faced by those questioning major events, like Holocaust denial or conspiracy theories related to the moon landing and 9/11. It insists that these viewpoints critique the events themselves rather than attack the individuals involved.
Jones’ appeal also describes the $1.4 billion judgment as overly punitive and a violation of Section 8.
If allowed to stand, his attorneys warn it could chill news reporting and foster a culture of self-censorship among journalists.
Lawyers for the Sandy Hook families countered Jones’ arguments, asserting that there is no valid reason for the Supreme Court to engage with his appeal, characterizing it as a last-ditch effort.
Connecticut’s Middle Court of Appeals upheld the vast majority of the $1.4 billion ruling in December, and the state Supreme Court declined to hear Jones’ appeal of that ruling in April.
In a related case in Texas, also involving another Sandy Hook victim’s family, Jones was similarly found liable without a trial due to his failure to produce documents, resulting in a $49 million judgment against him in August 2022.
Jones filed for bankruptcy at the end of 2022. An auction to settle assets for Infowars took place in November, but a bankruptcy judge rejected the results, raising concerns about how the auction was conducted.
Attempts to sell Infowars’ assets are currently being addressed in a Texas court in Austin, and Jones is challenging a recent court order regarding the settlement of these assets. Some of his personal property has already been sold as part of the bankruptcy proceedings.
