Conservative broadcaster Alex Jones’s request to postpone a defamation case brought against him by the families of victims in the 2012 Sandy Hook mass shooting was denied Thursday by the Connecticut Supreme Court.
In 2012, a gunman killed 20 children and 6 educators at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. Jones, who has espoused conspiracy theories on his InfoWars program, said in 2015 that the shootings never took place. Jones posited that the incident was a “synthetic” event and that child actors were used in photos of the event. In response, eight families of the victims killed in the shooting sued Jones for defamation.
“Jones is the chief amplifier for a group that has worked in concert to create and propagate loathsome, false narratives about the Sandy Hook shooting and its victims, and promote their harassment and abuse,” the lawsuit against Jones read. “Jones, along with these others, has persisted in the perpetuation and propagation of this outrageous, deeply painful, and defamatory lie in the face of a mountain of evidence to the contrary, and with no supporting evidence.”
Jones attempted to delay the defamation case three separate times. In July, he asked for a pause on the case while the U.S. Supreme Court reviewed the situation. In August, he filed a motion to extend the stay until the Supreme Court made its decision. Jones also asked the Connecticut Superior Court to allow sanctions to be levied against the Sandy Hook families involved in the lawsuit. Connecticut Superior Court Judge Barbara Bellis denied all three motions on Thursday.
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Jones said in April 2019 that he believed the shooting did occur, blaming his previous thought that Sandy Hook was a staged event on “a form of psychosis.”
The defamation lawsuit against Jones acknowledged that he did not believe the shooting was a hoax but alleged that Jones has accused the families of “faking their loved ones’ deaths.” According to the lawsuit, Jones allegedly exploited the incident as a means to make money.
In 2019, child pornography was discovered in documents sent to the Sandy Hook families’ legal team from Jones. Jones denied placing the images in the pre-trial discovery files and claimed the plaintiffs’ lawyers had embedded the files themselves.
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“I pray for divine intervention against the powers of Satan,” Jones said about the issue during an InfoWars episode. “I literally would never have sex with children. I don’t like having sex with children. I would never have sex with children.”
“If they want war,” Jones added, “you know, it’s not a threat. It’s like an AC/DC song. If you want blood, you’ve got it. Blood on the streets, man.”
Connecticut Superior Court Judge Barbara Bellis sanctioned Jones after the broadcast, calling it an “intentional, calculated act of rage for [Jones’s] viewing audience.”
Jones claimed that his comments are protected under the First Amendment as free speech and asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review the sanctions. No date for a hearing has been announced.
Newsweek reached out to InfoWars for comment.
