Texas Jury Orders Conspiracy Theorist Alex Jones Must Pay Parents of Sandy Hook Victim $45.2 Million in Punitive Damages

InfoWars host and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones has been ordered to pay just under $50 million in damages to a pair of parents whose son was killed in the 2012 mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary. (Briana Sanchez/AP)

A Texas jury decided Friday that conspiracy theory purveyor Alex Jones will pay one family $45.2 million in punitive damages after spreading lies about the 2012 massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School.

The jury’s decision Friday came the day after it awarded the parents of slain first grader $4.1 million for mental anguish, bringing the total damages against the InfoWars founder to $49.3 million.

Jones spent years telling his audience that one of the worst school shootings in American history was a hoax. Neil Heslin and Scarlett Lewis, who brought the charges against Jones, told the court how he made their lives a “living hell” after Jesse, their 6-year-old son, was gunned down in the attack.

“I can’t even describe the last nine-and-a-half years,” Heslin said. “The living hell that I and others have had to endure because of the recklessness and negligence of Alex Jones.”

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SOURCE: NPR, Dustin Jones and Jason Derose