The conspiracy theorist who created such acute distress for the families of those killed in the Sandy Hook massacre by spreading the lie that it was a hoax and thus inspired his rabid followers to persecute those families and make their lives a living hell, talks very tough. But it turns out that he is, like all bullies, a coward. He has been sued by the families and been ordered by the judge to attend a legal deposition and be questioned under oath but he did not show up, citing vague medical reasons, even though he was appearing on his show that same week. Jones is clearly trying to avoid a legal reckoning for his reckless and hateful instigation against the families. He has offered a settlement to the people suing him but they have refused, demanding that he appear in court.
Relatives of the Sandy Hook school shooting victims have rejected an offer from Alex Jones, host of the conspiracy theory and rightwing disinformation website Infowars, to pay $120,000 per plaintiff to resolve their lawsuit. The families said he defamed them by asserting the massacre never happened.
A Connecticut judge found Jones liable for damages in November, and a trial is planned to determine how much he should pay the families.
The plaintiffs said they have been subjected to harassment and death threats from Jones’ followers because of the hoax conspiracy promoted on his show.
The court filings posted online said: “Mr Jones extends his heartfelt apology for any distress his remarks caused.”
Last week Jones defied a court order to attend a deposition near his home in Austin, Texas, to provide testimony ahead of the trial. Jones said he was ill. A hearing is scheduled for Wednesday on a request by the plaintiffs to sanction Jones for not cooperating.
Lawyers for the families rejected the settlement offer within a few hours, saying in court filings that it was a “transparent and desperate attempt by Alex Jones to escape a public reckoning under oath with his deceitful, profit-driven campaign against the plaintiffs and the memory of their loved ones lost at Sandy Hook”.
Yesterday the judge found Jones in contempt for not showing up and has started issuing hefty fines.
The judge, Barbara Bellis, said that Jones will face a per-weekday fine starting at $25,000 until he sits for two days of depositions, the lawyer, Norm Pattis, said in a filing. The penalty, which will increase to $50,000 per day, is set to begin Friday.
Bellis said Jones hadn’t produced enough evidence to support his claim that he missed a deposition last week because of health problems.
I do not understand his legal strategy. If you do not show up to defend yourself, the verdict is automatically awarded to your opponents. He has already had one summary judgment against him for failing to show up for a trial, which means that he is presumed to have lost. He could have a similar result for this case too.
What is Jones afraid of? Is he afraid that he will break under cross-examination and start to cry, thus destroying his tough-guy image? His previous experience with courts during his divorce proceedings did not go well.
Another way that he is a bully (and like all other bullies): he didn’t expect to be held accountable. He expected the majority of bystanders to sit and do nothing or cheer him on because that’s what happened in the past (re: his fans). He had gotten away with it so long that he assumed he always would.
Perhaps Mr. Jones is looking maximize the martyr effect as a prelude to the next fleecing of his acolytes.
The stupid goes even further than that. He didn’t just appear on his show “that week”, he was broadcasting during the hearing about why he missed the deposition. Defense attorney was saying g they got a letter that AJ was staying home under medical supervision for an unspecified health issue he didn’t want to reveal, and plaintiff’s attorney cuts in “He’s broadcasting live right now”.
From his studio.
Which is not his home.
Which is where he told the court he was staying.
Leonard French (Lawful Masses on Youtube) has a reading of the hearing transcript and the judge is talking to Jones lawyer like he’s 3 (“your client says he’s saying at home, butnI have a representation from someone else that he’s somewhere else. Does that concern you?”) He’s trying so hard to argue his case but his client is making that impossible.
Until Alackof Cohones appears, let’s lock up his slimeball lawyer for insulting the court’s intelligence.
I think that Jones’ strategy is to avoid statements under oath at all costs. His deposition will be around forever, to prove his stupidity and his callousness and wrongness, whereas if he just has all these proceedings ruled against him, there is no record, and he can claim that he was railroaded, etc.
He’s thinking of how to continue his grift after paying out this lawsuit, and what his best position to get new marks and make money off of scamming them.
Fines? I was hoping for jail.
I think that Alex Jones (AJ) knows, possibly instinctively, that the enemy of BS is careful, detailed analysis. If he is required to tell the truth, and reveal his sources, or lack thereof, the very gripping, entertaining and emotionally fulfilling story falls apart. As a BS artists he crafts and refines stories. Humans love stories. Stories were the main entertainment and information source for millennia. Story tellers were valued for their ability to engage and inform the audience. Their ability to create compelling pictures in people’s minds.
AJ is a talented storyteller. Unfortunately he uses his talent unethically. Destructively. The last thing AJ wants is to have the story disassembled in public. To have to admit that it was all lies, and he knew they were lies, and he knew the lies were harming people. That he made literal millions of dollars winding people up, getting them mad, and using slander and character assassination to allow his audience to feel special and better than the others.