Judge Upholds $49 Million Verdict Against Alex Jones, Despite Cap - The New York Times

Politics|Judge Upholds $49 Million Verdict Against Alex Jones, Despite Cap

A Texas justice said connected Tuesday that she would bid the Infowars fabulist Alex Jones to wage the full $49 cardinal verdict a assemblage had awarded to the parents of a Sandy Hook schoolhouse shooting victim, contempt a Texas instrumentality capping punitive damages astatine acold little than the magnitude jurors had allotted.

In August, a assemblage successful Austin, Texas, ordered Mr. Jones to wage Scarlett Lewis and Neil Heslin, whose lad Jesse Lewis died successful the massacre successful Newtown, Conn., $4 cardinal successful compensatory damages and $45 cardinal successful punitive damages aft Mr. Jones dispersed lies that the shooting had been staged and that the parents were actors. Texas instrumentality caps punitive damages astatine 2 times economical damages positive $750,000 per plaintiff, which a lawyer for Mr. Jones, F. Andino Reynal, had predicted would bounds the grant to acold little than the jury’s verdict.

But successful a proceeding connected Tuesday, Judge Maya Guerra Gamble of the District Court successful Travis County, wherever Infowars is based, questioned the constitutionality of the Texas cap, and called the verdict “a uncommon case” successful which the affectional harm inflicted connected Ms. Lewis and Mr. Heslin was truthful terrible that “I judge they person nary recourse.”

Mr. Jones is apt to appeal, but the grant is lone a tiny portion of a deluge of damages helium is facing for the conspiracy theories helium dispersed done his Infowars media empire astir the 2012 shooting astatine Sandy Hook Elementary School. With a Connecticut tribunal awarding much than $1.4 billion to the families of 8 Sandy Hook victims this fall, Mr. Jones already faces fiscal ruin, and it remains unclear however overmuch wealth the families volition yet collect.

A 3rd damages proceedings awaits, successful a suit filed by Leonard Pozner and Veronique De La Rosa, the parents of the Sandy Hook unfortunate Noah Pozner. On Tuesday, Judge Guerra Gamble scheduled it to statesman March 27. Mr. Jones has already mislaid the suit, truthful the lone question that remains is however overmuch helium volition beryllium ordered to pay.

Mr. Jones has denounced the lawsuits against him and has said helium is “proud to beryllium nether this level of attack.”

In the tribunal proceedings connected Tuesday, a lawyer for Mr. Jones, Chris Martin, argued that portion the Texas punitive damages headdress had been exceeded successful a fistful of cases, those suits progressive much terrible affectional wounded than Mr. Heslin and Ms. Lewis had proved. The justice disagreed.

“This idiosyncratic and this institution person done thing horrible,” Judge Guerra Gamble said, referring to Mr. Jones and Infowars. She said Texas legislators had themselves questioned the constitutionality of the cap, and added that the lawsuit had made her contemplate her ain law oath. “Sometimes you are truthful engaged working, you hide what you are sworn to do,” she said.

Legal experts person said determination are disagreements astir the constitutionality of the cap, but Mark Bankston, the parents’ Texas lawyer, called the determination connected Tuesday a connection that “Mr. Jones cannot tally from accountability.”