In a remarkable moment in court, right-wing conspiracy theorist Alex Jones argued he simply had “tried to find out what actually happened” when he claimed that the Sandy Hook Elementary shoot was a “hoax.”
Jones also told the jury that he’s broke in an attempt to influence the compensatory verdict in the case. The Jury will determine how much in damages Jones will have to pay the parents, Neil Heslin and Scarlett Lewis, who won a default judgement against him earlier this year. An attorney representing Heslin and Lewis asked the jury last week to award Heslin and Lewis $150 million.
After the jury had left the courtroom following Jones’ testimony, Mark Bankston, the attorney for the plaintiffs, accused Jones and his attorney, Federico Andino Reynal, of trying to “poison” the trial, CNN reports.
Bankston specifically said Jones broke court orders when he attempted to discuss his net worth from the stand, adding that he would file a motion for sanctions against both Jones and Reynal.
“Mr. Jones just intentionally did that in violation of your order to attempt to poison this compensatory damage verdict to try to tell this jury that he’s broke, and he’s not, and that’s in violation of your order,” Bankston said to the judge.
Judge Maya Guerra Gamble said she will hear any motions officially filed for sanctions against Jones and Reynal after the conclusion of the trial. She then scolded Jones for his behavior and said he had already violated his oath to tell the truth twice.
“Mr. Jones, you may not say to this jury that you complied with discovery. That is not true. You may not say it again. You may not tell this jury that you are bankrupt. That is also not true,” Gamble said.
“You are already under oath to tell the truth,” Gamble added. “You’ve already violated that oath twice today, in just those two examples. It seems absurd to instruct you again that you must tell the truth while you testify. Yet here I am again.”
“This is not your show,” Gamble added.
Jones attempted to tell Gamble that he believed he was telling the truth.
“You believe everything you say is true, but your beliefs do not make something true,” the judge said before adding: “Just because you claim to think something is true does not make it true. It does not protect you. It is not allowed. You’re under oath. That means things must actually be true when you say them.”
