Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones owes Sandy Hook parents $4.1m, jury determines

The parents of one of the Sandy Hook victims have been awarded $4.1m (£3.3m) in damages in a defamation trial brought against internet conspiracy theorist Alex Jones.

Neil Heslin and Scarlett Lewis, whose six-year-old son Jesse Lewis was among the 20 students and six teachers killed in the attack in Connecticut, successfully sued Jones and his media company Free Speech Systems for defamation in October 2021.

A jury has now ruled that he is liable for damages totalling $4.1m (£3.3m) – some $145m less than the $150m (£123.4m) in damages Mr Heslin and Mrs Lewis were seeking.

On Thursday, Jones filed a motion for a mistrial, but the judge in Texas denied the request.

During a trial to determine the number of damages the parents should be awarded, Jones admitted that the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School was “100% real“, after previously claiming it was a hoax.

It also emerged that Jones’ lawyers “messed up” and sent him the contents of Jones’ phone by mistake.

Mark Bankston, the lawyer for Jesse’s parents, also accused Jones of approaching the trial in bad faith, citing broadcasts where he said the trial was rigged against him.

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Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones admits Sandy Hook school shooting is ‘100% real’ after claiming it was a hoax

He showed a video of Jones saying in his broadcast on Friday that the jury pool was full of people who “don’t know what planet they’re on”.

Judge Maya Guerra Gamble reprimanded Jones on Tuesday for not telling the truth under oath after he falsely told the court he was bankrupt and had complied with discovery in the case.

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