U.S. News

Alex Jones questioned in court over Sandy Hook hoax claims

By Matt Bernardini   |   Sept. 22, 2022 at 5:20 PM
Alex Jones was grilled in court Thursday during a defamation trial brought by parents of the victims of the Sandy Hook shooting. Photo by Pat Benic/UPI

Sept. 22 (UPI) -- Alex Jones was questioned Thursday at a defamation trial in Connecticut about his past rhetoric assailing the judicial system and the judge overseeing his defamation trial.

Christopher Mattei, one of the lawyers representing the Sandy Hook families, showed video of Jones calling the shooting "as phony as a $3 bill" and calling the parents of the victims "crisis actors" NPR reported.

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In response, Jones called Mattei an ambulance chaser, shouted that he has admitted he was wrong in calling the Sandy Hook mass murder a hoax and said he has apologized "hundreds of times" to the families of 20 first-graders and six educators killed in the attack, according to the Hartford Courant.

The outbursts caused the judge to threaten both sides with contempt if it continued.

The trial is being held a month after a Texas jury determined that Jones and his company, Free Speech Systems, the parent of Infowars, should pay two parents nearly $50 million.

Jones has faced multiple lawsuits after having claimed over the years that the 2012 mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut was a staged government conspiracy meant to take away guns from Americans.

In the Connecticut case, eight Sandy Hook families are suing Jones. He has already been found liable and Thursday's proceedings were part of the process of determining how much Jones will owe.

On Thursday, Mattei also noted how Jones has taken legal action in the past when he feels he has been defamed, and also argued that Jones was pushing the Sandy Hook lie as a marketing tool.

According to CNN, Norman Pattis, Jones' attorney, has argued that the claims made by the Sandy Hook plaintiffs are "exaggerated."

Pattis has also said the Sandy Hook families have "become partisans" and said the defense will argue the harm has been overstated "because they want to silence [Jones] for political reasons."