Far-Right Radio Host Alex Jones To Pay $965 Million to Sandy Hook Families in Damages

In a surprising move, a Connecticut jury has decided on Wednesday to award nearly $1 billion in damages to the families of the Sandy Hook victims who were defamed by far-right radio host Alex Jones by claiming that they were “crisis actors” in his radio show "Infowars."

Jones had, for years, claimed that the victims of the Sandy Hook massacre were “crisis actors,” and that the incident was a “staged” government plot that did not actually kill anyone. Since the start of the court case. However, he has acknowledged that the Sandy Hook massacre did happen, though he stopped short of apologizing to the parents and families of those who died, according to BBC.

The Connecticut jury decided that the plaintiffs, whose children died during the massacre, were to be given compensatory damages by Jones for slander and for emotional distress to the tune of $965 million overall, plus court and attorney fees, ABC News reported.

This comes close on the heels of a similar case in Texas where he was ordered to pay around $50 million in damages to the parents. Jones, who was on air during the reading of the decision, was angered by it, and his lawyer Norm Pattis plans to appeal the decision. “This must be what hell is like -- they just read out the damages, even though you don't got the money,” he said.

Many legal experts were surprised by the amount prescribed by the decision, with former U.S. attorney Harry Litman claiming that Jones has ultimately been ruined financially by the ruling, Variety reported.

“We’re talking about such outsized numbers that even if he’s able to bob and weave some, I just don’t see how he winds up anything but basically broke now for the rest of his life,” said former U.S. attorney, Harry Litman.

The plaintiffs, which include many families affected by the Sandy Hook massacre, are happy with the decision, with Robbie Parker, a man whose six-year-old daughter Emelie was murdered during the incident, thanked his lawyers for the help. “I'm just proud that what we were able to accomplish was just to simply tell the truth. And it shouldn't be this hard. And it shouldn't be this scary,” he said in a statement.

“Nobody should ever have to endure the kind of harassment and persecution that Alex Jones caused, especially the families of those killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School,” Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont said. “A jury in Connecticut today sent a strong message that what he did to these families and a first responder was disgraceful.”

Jones has another upcoming trial related to Sandy Hook which could potentially come with another large amount of damages to be paid by him.