A jury in Connecticut ordered conspiracy theorist Alex Jones and Infowars’ parent company, Free Speech Systems, to pay close to $1 billion to the family members of eight victims of the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary and an F.B.I. agent who responded to the scene of the 2012 massacre, which killed 20 first graders and six educators.
Jones had already been found liable for defamation after he spent years falsely describing the shooting as a hoax and accusing the victims’ families of being actors complicit in the plot. As a result, the families were threatened in person and online. He used his Infowars platform to spread these lies.
The jury’s decision divided the money among 15 plaintiffs: 14 relatives of eight Sandy Hook victims, and William Aldenberg, an F.B.I. agent targeted by conspiracy theorists, CNN reports.
The plaintiffs were awarded varying amounts by the jurors, who considered their testimony and other evidence presented in court to gauge the damage done to their reputations, invasion of their privacy and other factors. In total, the conspiracy theorist Alex Jones should pay $965 million to people who suffered from his false claims.
Here is the breakdown of what the jury said each plaintiff should receive, according to CNN:
Robert Parker, father of 6-year-old Emilie Parker: $120,000,000
Mark Barden, father of 7-year-old Daniel Barden: $57,600,000
William Aldenberg, FBI agent and first responder: $90,000,000
William Sherlach, husband of 56-year-old school employee Mary Sherlach: $36,000,000
David Wheeler, father of 6-year-old Ben Wheeler: $55,000,000
Francine Wheeler, mother of 6-year-old Ben Wheeler: $54,000,000
Jacqueline Barden, mother of 7-year-old Daniel Barden: $28,800,000
Nicole Hockley, mother of 6-year-old Dylan Hockley: $73,600,000
Ian Hockley, father of 6-year-old Dylan Hockley: $81,600,000
Donna Soto, mother of teacher Victoria Soto: $48,000,000
Carlee Soto-Parisi, sister of teacher Victoria Soto: $66,000,000
Carlos Matthew Soto, brother of teacher Victoria Soto: $57,600,000
Jillian Soto-Marino, sister of teacher Victoria Soto: $68,800,000
Erica Lafferty/trustee Richard M. Coan, daughter of school principal Dawn Hochsprung: $76,000,000
Jennifer Hensel, for the estate of Jeremy Richman and father who died by suicide of 6-year-old Avielle Richman: $52,000,000
Jones was not in the court at the time of the verdict.
He has a third Sandy Hook damages trial pending stemming from a defamation suit he lost to Lenny Pozner and Veronique De La Rosa, parents of Noah Pozner.
