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2 clusters · 35 sources · 3 days · First seen 27 days ago · Last updated 24 days ago

Alex Jones Sandy Hook defamation litigation

Overview

A Texas appeals court has significantly reduced a $50 million judgment against Infowars founder Alex Jones. The Texas Third Court of Appeals ruled that the award must comply with state laws limiting punitive damages, slashing that portion from over $40 million to $1.5 million. This leaves approximately $6 million in total damages remaining in the state case, including more than $4.1 million in compensatory damages awarded to Sandy Hook parents Neil Heslin and Scarlett Lewis.

While the court upheld the original finding of defamation regarding Jones’s false claims that the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre was a hoax, Jones has called the ruling a “gigantic victory for the First Amendment” and intends to appeal to the state Supreme Court.

Jones, who has left his Infowars platform and filed for bankruptcy through his company, Free Speech Systems, still faces more than $1 billion in total damages, including a $1.25 billion defamation judgment from a separate Connecticut lawsuit. To date, the families of the Sandy Hook victims have not collected any funds from Jones.

Entities

Texas Third Court of Appeals · Free Speech Systems · Scarlett Lewis · Alex Jones · Neil Heslin

Claims

What the coverage asserts, and how many sources carry each claim.

Coverage disagrees

Sources make claims that cannot both be true. CLSTR reports the disagreement; it does not decide who is right.

"The court slashed punitive damages from over $40 million to $1.5 million to comply with state caps." firstamendmentwatch.org · www.abajournal.com · www.insurancejournal.com

vs

"The Texas Third Court of Appeals reduced a $50 million judgment against Alex Jones to approximately $6 million." firstamendmentwatch.org · www.abajournal.com · www.insurancejournal.com

The claims provide different specific amounts for the reduced judgment ($6 million versus a reduction of punitive damages to $1.5 million).

[DISPUTED] The Texas Third Court of Appeals reduced a $50 million judgment against Alex Jones to approximately $6 million. firstamendmentwatch.org · www.abajournal.com · www.insurancejournal.com
[DISPUTED] The court slashed punitive damages from over $40 million to $1.5 million to comply with state caps. firstamendmentwatch.org · www.abajournal.com · www.insurancejournal.com
[● 3 SOURCES] The appeals court upheld the original finding of defamation against Alex Jones. firstamendmentwatch.org · www.abajournal.com · www.insurancejournal.com
[● 3 SOURCES] Alex Jones described the ruling as a major victory for the First Amendment. firstamendmentwatch.org · www.abajournal.com · www.insurancejournal.com
[● 3 SOURCES] Jones still faces a $1.25 billion defamation judgment in Connecticut. firstamendmentwatch.org · www.abajournal.com · www.insurancejournal.com
[● 3 SOURCES] Alex Jones and his company, Free Speech Systems, have filed for bankruptcy. firstamendmentwatch.org · www.abajournal.com · www.insurancejournal.com
[● 2 SOURCES] The court left more than $4.1 million in compensatory damages intact for parents Neil Heslin and Scarlett Lewis. www.abajournal.com · www.insurancejournal.com

Timeline

24 days ago

[INTERNATIONAL] 5 sources
Alex Jones: Texas appeals court reduces $50M Sandy Hook judgment
A Texas appeals court reduced a $50 million defamation judgment against Alex Jones to approximately $6 million, citing state limits on punitive damages while upholding the finding of defamation.
27 days ago

[BUSINESS] 30 sources
Texas appeals court reduces Alex Jones' Sandy Hook judgment to $1.5 million
A Texas appeals court unanimously reduced a $50 million judgment against Alex Jones to $1.5 million, citing state caps on punitive damages in the Sandy Hook defamation case.

Sources

abajournal.com · abc11.com · abc13.com · abc7news.com · aljazeera.com · americanwirenews.com · balleralert.com · ca.sports.yahoo.com · circleid.com · cremation.com · dnyuz.com · edmonton.citynews.ca · firstamendmentwatch.org · frontarm.com · haberaktuel.com · independent.co.uk · insurancejournal.com · kob.com · latimes.com · lawandreligionaustralia.blog · msnbc.com · mymotherlode.com · nemosnewsnetwork.com · newsday.com · ntd.com · perthnow.com.au · san.com · sentinelcolorado.com · srnnews.com · sunkthoughts.substack.com · theblaze.com · thelocalreport.in · thepatriotchronicles.com · whdh.com · wtop.com

This summary has been updated 1 time: see revision history